Famous Last Words
by TokyoGirl7
Summary: IchigoxOC. Rated T for language and some mild violence. On hiatus.
1. Who I am

Here is my first story! Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Chapter 1: Who I am

Life hasn't been the same ever since I have made _him_ as a friend. Ever since I met Daisuke, it all had changed. I have become an official protector. I protect the living and the dead. I make sure nothing bad happens to us all. Heh, I make myself sound like a super heroine. Well I feel like I am. I mean, no one knows about my 'gift' except for Hitomi; well, she also helps me fight. She's the sidekick. I feel as if I am a super heroine. During the day, I am a 'normal' high school student, who works as a dance instructor. At night, or whenever there is trouble, I become someone else. I am a Shinigami. Let me tell you how it all started.

It was about one year ago; I was out with my parents, my brother, and my sister-in-law, Mika. We were at the park, spending time together. It was what I called a 'Kodak Moment'. We were there for about two hours, when I heard a growl. I looked around from where I was seated, panicking. I have heard these noises ever since I was a child and with that noise, always came a ferocious looking monster. Once I had my arm broken since that monster attack me. I was on my full guard on. My brother saw my face and he knew instantly something was wrong. He also was able to see these monsters as well as ghosts, like me. He suggested to us all that we should go since it was getting late. Then suddenly, the growl was extremely loud and the ground began to shake. There it was; the monster with the masked face. 'Hollow...' I thought, 'Where is Daisuke?' My parents got scared, as did Mika. They were not scared as I was. "Run!" screamed Kai. Kai, my parents, and Mika ran, but I stayed put.

'Where is he?' I kept thinking over and over. My red eyes were searching the park, but also keeping watch as the Hollow got closer and closer. Then out of no where, Daisuke had appeared before me. "Run Tsukiko, I got this." I simply nodded and ran towards my family. As I ran, I could hear Daisuke fighting off the Hollow. But something then went wrong. In a flash, the Hollow appeared behind my family. "NO!" I screamed, but it was too late. In one swipe, my mother and father were gone. Kai and Mika barely made it out. I just stopped running and stood there. Daisuke got back into the action but got injured as well. "Daisuke!" I screamed and began to run towards him. He was bleeding fast, and it wasn't stopping. "Tsukiko, do you want to help your family? Protect the living and the dead?" "Yes, yes I do. Tell me what to do?" "Take my Zanpakutou and drive it through your heart." I grabbed his sword and right when the Hollow was about to attack, I rammed it through my heart.

The next thing I knew, I was wearing an outfit similar to Daisuke's, but different. The top in the shape of a halter, the pants, knee high and tight, and the shoes were ballet flats, and I had gloves with a metal plate on it. Unsheathing my sword, I quickly jumped and killed the Hollow. It was as if I just knew what to do. Once it had disappeared, I sheathed my new Zanpakutou and ran towards Daisuke. He was lying on the ground, bleeding. 'I still have my powers? How can that be possible...I was meaning to lend her my powers, but I guess she finally accessed the ones she owns herself.' "Daisuke...how-what can I do to help you?" "There's nothing you can do now. I have to move on...but I want to give you something that will now help you along your new journey." With that said, he placed two fingers onto my forehead, and with that, I gained new knowledge. I learned everything that he knew. "Arigato Daisuke-kun." I said, tears brimming in my eyes. "Please send me back to the Soul Society and don't forget to send your parents as well." "Hai." I grabbed my Zanpakutou once again and with the hilt, I pressed it onto his forehead. "Bye Daisuke...I'll miss you." And with that, he was back to where he belonged. I then turned around and walked towards my parents bodies. "Mom...Dad." My parents where standing there next to their bodies and once they heard me, they turned their heads towards me. "Mom, dad, I love you both so much." I ran towards them and hugged them both. "It's time for you to go to a better place. I'll miss you." With that, I did the same thing to them as I did to Daisuke. They left to the Soul Society. All that was left was three black butterflies. With that I blacked out.

Now it has been one year. I have kept doing my Shinigami duties and with help as well. I go training with a family friend and with Hitomi, who comes along. I have changed over that one year. I don't care what people say about me, but once they say something about a loved one, I would hurt them. I had to learn to defend myself because if I didn't know how, I would perhaps be dead right now. I used to be hurt emotionally and physically since I looked different. Kids would call me a demon when I was little because of my eyes, and now, I just ignore them and go on with my life. As the years went by, I finally understood that I was meant to be different. Yup, I was meant to be different alright.


	2. Texts, Hollows, Mod Souls, Oh my!

Chapter 2: Texts, Hollows, Mod Souls, Oh my!

"Somebody get me through this nightmare, I can't escape myself, So-"

With that I slammed my alarm to shut up. 'Man I hate mornings'. I laid in bed for about another 6 minutes and then got up to get ready for school. I turned my radio back on again and attached my iPod to it. I put it on shuffle mode and started listening to Fall Out Boy's song "Bang The Doldrums". I went to the bathroom and did my morning routine. Once I got out, I walked to my drawer and took out some white ankle socks and some grey leggings. "El Tango de Roxanne" was now blasting in the air. I went to my closet and took out my school uniform. Oh how I hated it. I didn't mind the shirt and jacket, but I hate the bow and skirt. I requested when the school year started that instead of the bow if I can wear a red tie. Luckily, they said yes. With the skirt, however, they said I couldn't wear pants, so I wear leggings under it. They haven't told me anything about that. "Why does my heart cry? Feelings I can't fight. Your free to leave me but just don't deceive me and please believe me when I say I love you." I sang with the music. I went to the bathroom, put my clothes on and began to comb my hair. "Bad Boy" by CASCADA was now playing. When the song was about halfway, I turned off the radio. School started around 8 am and it was now around 7:21. I grabbed my cell phone and iPod from my desk and walked downstairs. Once I was in my living room, I grabbed my backpack and checked if everything was in there. "Notebooks, pens, pencils, Soul Candy. Alright everything is in here." With that I put my shoes on, grabbed my keys, and went outside and locked my door. I was now off to school.

As I was walking and listening to my iPod, I felt my cell phone vibrate. Before I opened my phone I felt the reiatsu of a Hollow. I looked at my phone and it was a text message. "There's a Hollow near you right now. C ya skool! Hitomi 3". I just sweat dropped at the message. "It had to be Hitomi" I said to myself, "That girl is gonna get me killed one of these days." I got my backpack and opened it up. I grabbed the Soul Candy and ate one. Instantly my soul went out and the mod soul was standing up. "Start walking to school and make sure you walk slowly. I'll catch up with you right now." "Yes ma'am!" I then ran off towards the Hollow. It was near the park. Once I got there, I saw a little ghost girl being chased. Behind her was a Hollow that looked like a mix of a cat and a bird. It was pretty weird. "Are you ready Kuro Maho?" 'Yup! Ready when you are!' I grabbed my sais and ran towards the Hollow.

'Duck, jump, attack, dodge; damn it feels like I am doing a freakin' dance routine,' I thought when I was fighting the Hollow. I had cut a piece of the Hollows arm and it screamed in pain. I was about to aim for its mask, when I was hit. The Hollows tail had hit my stomach and I got a deep cut. "Tsukiko-sama!" I looked and there was the mod soul that was in my body. "What the hell are you doing here?! I thought I told you to go to school!" "Well you did but I thought that you would need help." With that said she ran with my body and kicked the Hollow, sending it flying. "Woah!" I said, 'This is no ordinary mod soul. Maybe I should use her permanently. I'll put her in a stuffed animal or something.' "Yo Luna!" "Who's Luna?" the mod soul asked. "You are!" I said while dodging the Hollows attack as I went back to fighting, "That's your name from now on. Now get that kid and take her to a safe place." I wanted this fight to end, so I concentrated on my reiatsu and put them into my sais. In a flash, I was right behind the Hollow and with that opportunity, I stabbed the Hollows mask. In an instant, it had vanished and is now heading to find peace. "Phew, now that that is done, you can come out from hiding kid." The little girl had come out of her hiding place with Luna right behind her. "Nice job Luna." "Thanks boss!" She said all cheery. "Now kid, it's time for you to go somewhere safe and where you will be happy." Before I was able to place the hilt-end of one of my sais onto her forehead, she ran toward me and gave me a hug. This surprised me so I hugged her back. "Arigato onee-san." This shocked me more. I looked down at her and said, "No problem." And with that, I sent her to the Soul Society.

"Wow boss that was something alright." "Don't call me boss. My name is Tsukiko." "Well then Tsukiko, it's time to go to school." "Alright then, but first lets find ya a body." I looked around the park and something caught my eye. A stuffed animal in the form of a puppy was lying there. Its black material made it look adorable, but not only that there was a stitching of a moon. 'Woah must be my lucky day or something.' I got Luna out of my body and went back into my own. "Gah Luna!! I'm in pain!" I picked up the stuffed animal and I put it inside my backpack. I got my cell phone and looked at the time. "OMG I'm late to school!!" It was 8:23 already. I ignored the pain in my body and ran.

Meanwhile...

"There's no Hollow here!" An orange haired Shinigami screamed to a somewhat short girl with black hair. "There was one here a few minutes ago." "Oh well, let's head back to class."

Back to Tsukiko

By the time I finally made it to school, it was 8:44. I changed my shoes and began walking towards my class. 'Ah good old 1-3' I thought and then opened the door. "Now who can tell-Takeshi?" Ochi sensei said. Once she said my last name, everyone looked towards me. "Why are you late?" "There was an emergency where I work so I was needed." I know that sounded like a lame excuse, but it was kinda true. Killing Hollows is my job. "Ok then. Take your seat." "Hai." I walked towards my seat, which was next to Hitomi. "Got the job done?" She whispered to me. "Yea job got done." "Oh and by the way, lower your reiatsu." 'Shit!' I felt as if I was being stared at. I looked around and finally found out who was staring at me. Rukia Kuchiki, the Shinigami who lost her powers, and Ichigo Kurosaki, the substitute Shinigami who has Rukia's powers and the one who has the same gift as me. 'Oh boy this is going to be such a fun day.' I then went back to paying attention to the lesson before me.


	3. Fight Club

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Chapter 3: Fight Club

After waiting both patiently and impatiently, lunch finally came around the corner. I took out my bento box and opened it. There waiting for me was a peanut butter with grape jelly sandwich and a Sprite. I closed the box and got off my seat. "Tsukikoooo." "What now Hitomi?" "Do you wanna eat with me and Den?" "Uhh I don't think so. I don't wanna intrude with your lovey-dovey ness. I'll just eat in a tree or something." "Are you sure?" "Yea I'm very sure. Go enjoy yourself with your boyfriend. I'll be fine." "Ok then. Catch ya in a while!" "Yea yea." Before I left the room, I grabbed my cell phone, Luna's pill, and my bento box.

As I was walking outside, I scanned the area. Boys play fighting, girls gossiping amongst one another. But as I walked, I heard someone say "Red-eyed demon freak". I turned around and there was who I called, "Cho the Hoe" or "The Stuffer" and her two little friends, "The Twigs". "Well, well, if it is the red-eyed demon freak", said Cho Miusaki. "What now Miusaki? I don't want any problems today. So go stuff your bra or something." "Fuck you! At least I'm all natural, unlike you!" This had caught everyone's attention and gathered around us in a circle. In that circle, everyone that I know or talk to was there. This included Kurosaki and his friends, Kuchiki, Orihime with her friends, and Hitomi with Den. "Listen Cho the Hoe..." when I said this I heard Hitomi laughing, "...if you don't back the fuck off, I am going to kick your ass. Besides, I'm all natural, unlike you who stuff her bra." "That's it!!" And with that last phrase, a fight began.

As she kept trying to throw a punch at me, I kept dodging. She was about to punch my face when I just simply grabbed her wrist and punched her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her and making her fall. "The Twigs" ran at me and was about to kick me, but being the dancer I am, naturally did the splits. As quickly as I did the splits, I brought my legs back together and with one of my legs, did a roundhouse kick on the ground, which made them fall. Once "Cho the Hoe" got up, I quickly got up and lifted my right leg, my foot right where her neck was at. "I'm giving you the chance to leave or else." With this said, she ran off, with "The Twigs" going right after her.

Once the fight ended, the people around me cheered. Most of them were congratulating me. "Alright now people the show is over." I walked away when I felt something near the school. 'Damn please not another Hollow.' Right at that exact moment, I got a text. 'Ur right about ur gut feelings. Hollow 2 miles 4rm here. Go kick ass!!' 'Is she a psychic now or what?' I began running toward my secret exit. I crawled under the space and began running again. Once I got close, I swallowed Luna's pill. Immediately my soul came out. "So Tsukiko, where we headed?" Luna asked. "Just about this corner, turn left here." As we turned we saw the Hollow. It was your average Hollow, ugly looking and growling. "Oh a Shinigami. I can't wait to eat your soul!" "Yea? Well I can't wait to kick your sorry ass."

Ichigos POV

During class I was watching Tsukiko Takeshi. When Rukia felt her reiatsu and told me it was like the one she felt when we were getting to the park, I became suspicious of her. 'Is she a friend or an enemy?' Then lunch finally came. Rukia and I were planning on questioning Takeshi during lunch. "So Rukia, how do you plan on questioning her?" "Hmm...why don't we just ask her if she wants to join us for lunch?" "What type of plan is that?! How do you know if she is not gonna go eat with her friend?" "Because, fool, I just heard her say she is gonna eat alone." This made me sweat drop. "Oh. Alright let's just go and get her." We began to follow Takeshi outside when she was stopped by Cho Miusaki and her two friends. They all are annoying. All of a sudden, everyone had heard Cho scream out, "Fuck you! At least I'm all natural, unlike you!" Once she said this, everyone had gathered around to see if a fight was gonna happen. Rukia had to drag me there and not only that, Kiego, Mizuiro, and Chad was there was well.

"Hey Ichigo! Can't you believe it?! A CAT FIGHT!!" Kiego said, with a creepy smile. "Kiego please stop your scaring me," Mizuiro said. "What's a cat fight?" Rukia whispered. "When two girls fight." I simply said. "Listen Cho the Hoe..." Takeshi started saying, "...if you don't back the fuck off, I am going to kick your ass. Besides, I'm all natural, unlike you who stuff her bra." This really pissed Cho off. Well, it was actually true that she stuffed her bra. "That's it!!" The fight had finally begun. Takeshi really had the upper hand throughout the fight. Even if it was three against one, she knew how to defend herself. Takeshi had done a roundhouse kick on the floor and had knocked down the two girls, but what had surprised me was when she did the splits. 'Wow I never knew she could do that.' When Cho got up, she quickly got up and lifted her right leg, and her foot right where her neck was at. "I'm giving you the chance to leave or else." With this said, she ran off, with the other two going right after her.

A lot of people began to cheer for her. I simply smirked. 'This girl has moves. Not only that she is cute-Wait what?! No bad Ichigo.' "Alright now people the show is over." Takeshi said. With that she walked off, but suddenly stopped and ran off. "What was that about?" Rukia's phone had then beeped. She flipped it open and said one word, "Hollow." With that we ran off. Once we got close to the area, Rukia put her glove on and hit me right in the back of my head, making my soul go tumbling down. I got up and screamed at her, "Warn me next time damn it!!" "Hurry up! We are almost there." We kept on running while she also carried my body, but once we got there, we saw a Shinigami. This Shinigami had black hair, tight pants, and halter type of top. We hid behind a wall so that the Shinigami wouldn't see us. "Oh a Shinigami. I can't wait to eat your soul!" "Yea? Well I can't wait to kick your sorry ass." Once I heard the Shinigami's voice, I instantly recognized it. 'No way...'

End of Ichigos POV


	4. Yo Ho Ho and a Following We Go!

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Chapter 4: Yo Ho Ho and a Following We Go!

"Yea? Well I can't wait to kick your sorry ass." The words had just left my mouth and I quickly sprang into action. The Hollow started to get ready to attack as well. I took out Kuro Maho and began my assault. The Hollow swung its claw at me and I did what my instincts told me to do: jump. As I jumped, the Hollow simply lifted his arm to attempt to grab me, but as it was close to touching me, I stabbed its hand. It cried out loud and brought its hand close to his chest, as if it was inspecting the damage. I quickly ran and said, "This is the end for you." I grabbed my sais and placed them together, as if I was holding a katana. "Kuro Maho, MYSTIC SHADOW STRIKE!'" I jumped and immediately, a black beam erupted from Kuro Maho and hit the Hollow right in the head, instantly destroying it. As I landed, I crouched but then got up, placing Kuro Maho back to its rightful place, in sheathes that are on my hips. "I know you're there. Why don't you just get out from your hiding place and confront me." "Damn it" I heard someone say. The person, or should I say persons, came out from behind the wall and I simply smirked at the sight. "Wow Kurosaki and Kuchiki, I never knew you both were spies now. And you're a Shinigami too eh?"

It was quiet and the silence was starting to kill me. I kinda don't like to be in situations where it is too quiet. Ichigos voice had suddenly broken the silence by asking a simple question. "Are you a good guy or a bad guy?" I smirked. I knew it was going to be a type of question where it would question my place in what was going on. "I'm afraid you're going to have to figure that out yourself." With that, I used shunpo (flash step) and ran to where I left Luna. I figured it would be easier if she just hanged out at the park so she wouldn't get into any type of trouble. Once I arrived, I saw her there lying on the grass looking at the clouds. I walked towards and sat with her. "How did it go?" Luna asked. "Went well, but I got caught. Two of my classmates saw me." "Really? Who?" "Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki. C'mon we have to get back to class." "OK!" We ran back towards the school and I slipped back into my body before anyone noticed. I just walked inside and saw that everyone looked as if they were leaving. "Tsukikooooo," Hitomi ran towards me, both her and my backpack in her hands, "We get to go home now! Yay!!" I just sweat dropped since she did a little dance. How I am friends with her is a complete mystery, but I love the girl, like a sister.

As we were walking back we were having our own little conversation about an important topic to us. Try to have a little guess. It was about one of our all time favorite movie, Pirates of the Caribbean. "No way! I say that Jack Sparrow is the hottest!" Hitomi said, with a shine in her eyes. "Well, I personally think Will Turner is the hottest since he is so romantic and will always be there for you." "Well Jack Sparrow is also protective and-" "Hitomi, he mostly cares about rum." "-But still. He Is Hot!" "Wait a minute." I said with a whisper. "What is it?" "Oh nothing." Knowing Hitomi, she is going to really want to know what I am gonna say, since she is a curious little thing. "What is it?! I wanna know!" She said while clinging to my arm, which she was holding onto really hard. "Let go of my arm and I'll tell you." By now I was starting to get a little annoyed. "OK!" She lets go, "now tell me!" "Alright come closer." She moves a step. "Closer." Another step. "A little more." Now her face was right in front of mine. I open my mouth and screamed out, "WILL TURNER IS HOTTER!!" With that she fell to the floor due to the loud frequency and had swirls in her eyes. "Umm Hitomi?" She was still on the floor. 'Hmm how to get her up? Oh!' "Oh my gosh it's Johnny Depp!" "Where?!" She said in an instant and got up faster than the speed of life. Hitomi kept looking around as I just began to walk away, as if I didn't know her. "Tsukiko he isn't here. Huh? Tsukiko waiiit!"

Ichigos POV

By the time we came back, there was no sign of Tsukiko. 'Where did she go?' "C'mon Ichigo we have to go back to class now." Rukia said, dragging the boy to the classroom. Once inside, everyone was just talking and doing nothing. Ichigo and Rukia walked over to Kiego, Mizuiro, and Chad who were talking. About what you may ask. Girls. "She is soo hot, I wanna ask her out!" "Who is hot?" I asked. "Tsukiko of course!!" "Kiego, I don't think she would ever go out with you." Mizuiro said. "Why you gotta crush my dreams like that?!" "Hey where is Ochi sensei?" I asked. "There was a meeting that she had to attend." Chad said. In about a minute, Ochi sensei had came in. "Students, the principle has just announced that classes will be canceled due to the fact that there is a district meeting. So you are free to go." With that she left back to the meeting. "WOO LETS GO PARTY NOW!!" "Kiego shut up."

As I was putting my notebooks inside my backpack, I heard Hitomi Aichi scream, "Tsukikooooo," Hitomi ran towards Tsukiko and said, "We get to go home now! Yay!!" When she said this, she did a dance which was somewhat bizarre. Then they both left the classroom. "Ichigo, hurry up. We can follow her now." "I'm going, jeez."

Rukia and I were following both girls when I heard start talking about Pirates of the Caribbean. "Hey Ichigo." "What now Rukia?" "What is Pirates of the Caribbean?" 'Oh god how am I going to explain this to her.' "Well it is a movie about some pirates and stuff. I'll show you the movie when we get back home." "Ok!" Out of no where, Tsukiko screamed out, "WILL TURNER IS HOTTER!!" 'Woah.' Rukia just looked confused like when she tried to drink juice from the juice box. Suddenly they left. "C'mon we gotta follow them and fast!"

End of Ichigos POV

"I'll talk to you later alright Tsukiko. Have fun at work ok. Say hi to the girls for me." Hitomi said. "Will do! Say hi to your parents and to Riku!" "Alright!" Hitomi had finally gone inside her house. Once she went inside, I took out my iPod and put it on shuffle mode. Rise Against started playing. "I know I've been gone for it seems like forever" I started singing. I kept on walking for another 15 minutes, when I finally got to my place. It nothing special, it's just home. My home. It used to belong to my parents, but it is now mine. It's basically a two story house with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen, living room, a room where I can just hang out in and draw and play the guitar and a basement. I basically use the basement as a dance studio and training room. I took out my keys and opened the door. Once I went in, I closed it and took off my shoes and walked up to my room.

My room is my sanctuary. It is filled with pictures of my friends, movie posters, and posters of my favorite bands. I dropped my bag on my bed and went into the closet to take out a small duffle bag. I also took out my sweats, leotard, shorts and jazz shoes. I placed all of those items into my bag, as well as deodorant. Don't want to smell or anything. I began rummaging through my closet to find something to wear for the time being. Once I put the clothes on, I grabbed my duffle bag and made sure that I had my iPod, keys, wallet, cell phone, Luna's soul pill, grabbed my shoes and headed out to work.

Meanwhile...

"Chappy to Strawberry. Chappy to Strawberry. Come in Strawberry." "Rukia why the hell do I have to be Strawberry!" Ichigo screamed into the walkie talkie. "Because I said so. Now where is the target? Over." "She just left the house. I'm going after her now. Over and out."


	5. The Dancer and the Interrogator

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Ch. 5: The Dancer and the Interrogator

Walking down the streets around 2 in the afternoon is something that a high school student can hardly do. Unless it's the weekend, or there is no school, or if it's vacation time. You get the picture. As I was walking the down the streets towards my job, I started looking around. Men with briefcases, women with shopping bags or some with their own briefcase, all heading to their destination. Venders screaming out saying that they were having a sale on food or other items. Young children, who may have gotten out of school early, were walking with their mothers. sigh How I may sometimes want envy these children, but I knew better. I would rather be glad that they have someone is their lives.

I kept on walking for about another 6 minutes when I arrived outside the studio. Just by looking inside, thanks to the windows, I can see the girls just finishing off a ballet routine. I smiled and walked up to the door and went inside. "Hi girls! Great job." I praised the girls. "Tsukiko-sensei!" They all ran towards me and tried to give me a hug. "Alright, alright, girls go get dressed. Your parents are on their way to pick you all up." A light brown haired woman said. "Yes Kazumi-sensei." The girls ran off to get dressed. "How did it go today Kazumi?" Kazumi was once my sensei and as I got older, she hired me to teach. "The girls did great today. We are reviewing all the dances that they learned for the upcoming show. Are your students coming out?" "It's their choice, and if some of them do want to, I'll just rearrange the positions." "Oh good. You're here early. School got let out or what?" "Yea some sort of meeting or something. But hey I got to work early then normal." "True true, but you're early by like 2 hours." "WHAT?! Oh man. Oh well I guess I work on a new routine or something." "Can't wait to see what you come up with. Gotta go make sure the girls are dressed. See you in a while." "Alright!" As Kazumi went to go check on the girls, I walked into one of the dressing rooms and changed into my leotard and shorts. Once I was done I walked out and placed my duffel bag next to the radio. 'Show time.'

Ichigos POV

Following Tsukiko hasn't been easy. I have to keep making sure that she will not see me as well as avoiding people walking along. I was starting to get bored when suddenly, "Chappy to Strawberry. Come in Strawberry." "Rukia, can I please have a different name." "Haven't we discussed this already? NO! Now where is your position?" "Still following Takeshi." "Alright. Contact me when you are close or have made contact." "Will do." I turned off the walkie and continued my journey. 'Why do we have to take such drastic measures to talk to this girl? This sucks.' I kept on following her when she finally stopped. I hid behind a light pole and waited until she made a move. She went inside the building and I waited for about 10 minutes. I then made my move.

I walked up toward the building and noticed the sign. 'DANCE STUDIO!? Tsukiko is a dancer?!' As I thought of this, I saw Tsukiko approach a radio. She was wearing some sort of tight shirt and really short shorts. 'Why does she always wear leggings? She has nice legs. Wait, no stop it Ichigo.' She turned on the radio and began to do some stretches.

End of Ichigos POV

I turned on the radio and placed a mixed CD inside of it. Nine Inch Nails "The Hand That Feeds" was blasting off the speakers. I began by stretching out my arms and progressed to stretching my legs. "Ah feels good. Aghh wait is that a cramp?! Nope just me." After stretching for another 5 minutes, I felt someone watching me. I looked forward at bit to look at the mirrors. The mirrors were used so we can see whether we are doing the right movements. Well anyways, I looked up and I felt as if I went bug-eyed. There outside was Ichigo Kurosaki. 'What the hell is he doing here?' I got up and made it look like I was going to go get something from the back. Instead, I was gonna go through the side exit and confront the curious, stalking strawberry. I began walking toward the back and then went toward the side door. I was walking quietly and slowly, making sure that Ichigo wouldn't hear me. Once I was close, I then said, "What are we looking at?" "AH!" Ichigo screamed. I just started laughing. "That's not funny!" "Yes it was! You should have seen your face. So what brings you here?" "Uhh well you see, I was, um , just walking along. And I saw you and I thought I should um, say hello. Yeah!" "Uh huh. Why don't I believe that? Anyways, why don't you come inside? Then you can start interrogating me before I start working." I began walking towards the door, but stopped when Ichigo wasn't moving. "Are you coming or not?" "Yea."

"So what did you wanna know? I'm only allowing you three questions. So choose wisely." I told him while I was continuing my stretches. "Three questions right? Ok well I guess my first one would be, are you a good guy or a bad guy?" 'He could have thought of a better question.' "I am a good guy. You don't have to worry about me being an enemy. Next question." "How did you become a Shinigami?" Of all the questions, this one had to be asked. "I'm sorry Kurosaki, I can't answer that question yet. You need to gain my trust first." "Alright. But don't call me Kurosaki. We are allies right? Oh and I'll save my last question for some other time" "Alright then and I won't call you Kurosaki, but that means you have to call me Tsukiko as well." Ichigo gave a small smile. "Deal." This was the first time I had actually seen him smile. 'Wow he looks really cute when he smiles. Wait a minute Tsukiko, bad girl, bad.' I scold myself.

It got quiet again and it was staring to get a bit awkward. 'Damn it's starting to get quiet. Say something, anything!' "Since when have you danced, and this is not my last question." "Oh well I guess I have been dancing since maybe I was 8. Not sure. But I always loved it as a kid. I used to watch some music videos and try to do the dances, like with Madonna." "Wow that's cool. I never assumed that you were a dancer until I saw you do the splits." "You saw that today? Hehehhe well Cho the Hoe was getting what she deserved. She shouldn't be picking on people just because they look different." "Yea I know what you mean." I smiled. "Hey what time is it?" "Umm..." Ichigo looks at his watch, "its 3:47. Why?" "Ah I have about less than an hour before I start working. You can always stay and hang out if ya want and we can discuss more about working together or something." "Sure." There went that small smile again.

"Ichi-nii? What are you doing here?" I looked up and saw one of my students and Ichigo's sister, Yuzu Kurosaki. "YU-YUZU?! What are you doing here?" "I take dance lessons here Ichi-nii. What are you doing here?" "Oh well you see Yuzu, Ichigo came over because we have to work on a project together. So we were just discussing what we were going to do. And he decided to just wait after I got out of work so we can work on the project." I said with a smile. 'C'mon believe it. Believe it' "Ooooh ok. Does that mean you can come over for dinner tonight then?" "Ugh I don't know. I mean-" "Yea she is coming over tonight Yuzu." I looked at Ichigo when he said this. 'Damn this boy, saying what I am going to do. Oh well might as well go.' "Yea I'll go." "Yay!" Yuzu screamed. 'Well this is going to be an interesting night.'


	6. Don't Stop, Just Go With the Beat

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Ch. 6: Don't Stop, Just Go With the Beat of the Song

"Hey I'll be back. I have to send a message to Hitomi. So stay here k." I got up from the floor and walked towards the back room. There, we have a laptop, in which I use when I am bored or when I have to mix music and cut it. I turned it on and signed onto my account. I logged in and went on Instant Messenger. I checked to see if Hitomi was on. 'Yup there she is.'

TokyoxPANICxGirl: hey hitomi hows it goin?

spunkymunky: tsukikooooooo

TokyoxPANICxGirl:...

spunkymunky: im doin alright cant complain

spunkymunky: have ya worked on ne new routines for work? cuz ya gotta bring da bacon oink oink

spunkymunky: lmao!

TokyoxPANICxGirl:yea imma get started on one today i think

spunkymunky: o kewl!! guess what ? i bet u didnt know what a conceited mother effer confucius was

spunkymunky: lol

TokyoxPANICxGirl: WHAT

spunkymunky: lol yep

spunkymunky: he was

TokyoxPANICxGirl: lol

TokyoxPANICxGirl: y?

spunkymunky: surprising wasnt it?

spunkymunky: lol

TokyoxPANICxGirl: lol

spunkymunky: o well bcuz he thought that becuz he wasnt a high appointed officer in his home, it wasnt the fault of heaven or men, it was just that he was REALLY well known in heaven. so his earth popularity didnt matter

TokyoxPANICxGirl: ooh

TokyoxPANICxGirl: ok

spunkymunky: lol well i thought that made him sound conceited...

spunkymunky: lol hey maybe somebody could like walk up to confucius and kick him in the shins

spunkymunky: lol

TokyoxPANICxGirl: knowing u...u would

TokyoxPANICxGirl: hopefully u dont kick me or shock me or something

spunkymunky: y would i do that to u...u know i lurve u...

TokyoxPANICxGirl: well i dont think imma be able to come over tonite

spunkymunky: y?? cries in dark corner

TokyoxPANICxGirl: lol apparently i got caught so imma explain our little job to ichigo

TokyoxPANICxGirl: so i have to go to his place

spunkymunky: like a date?? O lalala!

TokyoxPANICxGirl: WHAT?! Nonononono we're just friends

spunkymunky: yea...friends...with benefits...lol

TokyoxPANICxGirl: w/e

spunkymunky: le gasp! u like him!

TokyoxPANICxGirl: no i dont sorry gotta go work now

TokyoxPANICxGirl: ttyl k

spunkymunky: ok bye bye mrs kurosaki!

TokyoxPANICxGirl: damn it noooo!

spunkymunky signed off

'Must...kill...Hitomi...or something!'

After being online for another 10 minutes, I decided to go back and see how Ichigo and Yuzu were doing. It was around 4:10. I walked into the room and I saw Yuzu doing her stretches while talking to Ichigo. I stopped under the doorway and listened to the conversation. "Ichi-nii, what should I make for dinner since Tsukiko-sensei is coming over?" "I dunno. But for desert make something with chocolate." This made me leave my little spot. "CHOCOLATE!!" I ran towards Ichigo and hugged him. "Ichi, how did you know that I **love** chocolate??" "Um..." 'Damnit, it was for me not her, but now I know something about her. She loves chocolate.' "Lucky guess, I guess." "Aww don't lie to me." I let go of him and I noticed that his face had some red color to it. "Ichigo, were you blushing?" "NO I WASN'T. It's hot." "Oh. Whatever then. Yuzu you ready for today's lesson?" "Yup! What are we going to work on today?" "Hmm...I was thinking about reviewing some of the routines since there is a dance show coming up." "Really? Sensei I want to come out." "And you shall!!"

"So how many students do you teach Tsukiko?" "Uhh I actually lost count." "What?! How can you possibly do that?" "Well I teach different types of dances so I always have different students. For example, on Tuesdays and Thurdays I teach jazz. While on days like Mondays and Wednesdays I teach hip hop." "What about tomorrow?" "Since tomorrow is Friday, I have...THE DAY OFF!!" "Oh." "Yup so I can relax and sleep and do my other job." "Which is?" "You should know idiot!" I said hitting him in the head. "YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO HIT ME!" Ichigo screamed while glaring at me. "PAY ATTENTION MORE OFTEN THEN!" I replied, giving him a glare as well. "Umm sensei." "Huh?" I almost forgot that Yuzu was here. "Sensei it's 4:17, shouldn't you be preparing the lesson." "Oh yea. Hehhehehe." I said while scratching the back of my neck, while also having a sweat drop form on the back of my head. "Who's the idiot now?" "I heard that!"

In about 15 minutes, I was standing in front of my entire dance class. Some looked excited and ready to move, while others still had their timid-ness, making them look shy but cute. I always had a thing for kids, thats why I asked Kazumi if I can teach kids. If I taught people my age, well I would have probably killed them. Time for evil laugh. BUAHAHAHHAHAHA! Ok enough of that. "Hello class. How are you all dong?" "Hi sensei! We are doing good." "Awesome!! Now today we are going to be reviewing some of our previous dance routines since we are having a dance show. Alright, those of you who would like to come out in the show stay here, while the rest who would rather not move to the side." About 1/3 of the class moved to the other side. "Alright, those of you who are on the sides can work review on the routine that we have been recently working on. The rest of you, lets get to work!"

Ichigos POV

As I sat here watching Tsukiko work, it made me think about my life in general. Will I continue working as a Shinigami, or will Rukia get her powers back? Man this is confusing. "Nicely done Kisa!" I looked towards Tsukiko and saw that she was smiling at one of her students. There were basically just reviewing moves and from what I have just seen, Tsukiko is a really good teacher. "Alright let's start from the top. 5, 6, 7, 8." There they went again. Dancing to this song that Tsukiko told me which is called "Fences" by Paramore. It's a good song and has an awesome beat. The dance steps really went with the beat of the song. I can't believe I didn't know Yuzu did this type of thing. I don't even know how she has been able to manage her time to do this with mom not being there. sigh "Tsukiko-sensei, can we have a break and see you do a dance routine?" This certainly caught my attention. "Alright." Suddenly all the girls stopped what they were doing and sat where I was sitting. They all looked excited. "Onii-san you can finally see how good Tsukiko-sensei is." "Yea, can't wait to see how see dances." "Yukiko." A little girl with light brown hair and eyes to match looked up. "Yes sensei?" "Can you put number 7 on?" "Hai!" She ran towards the radio and pressed a button. As quickly as she pushed the button she ran back. Music began to play and the beat was awesome. I instantly recognized the song. "Monsters" by Matchbook Romance began playing.

Just watching her dance amazed me. All the turns, leaps, everything went in sync. Step by step. This girl is something alright. Heh, if I end up working with her in this Shinigami business, it might be interesting.

End of Ichigos POV


	7. Dinner and a Show, Nice Combo

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Chapter 7: Dinner and a Show, Nice Combination

After a hard day of working, which was mainly prancing around, a bit, I was finally free from work. After I got dressed to what I was wearing before I changed, I met up with Ichigo and Yuzu outside of the studio. "Well let's go to your place Ichigo." We walked back in an almost complete silence. Yuzu did most of the talking, saying how she was excited that I was finally going to come over and all. I smiled at the girl. She was an amazing child, always with a smile on her face. Only a few things made her cry. I remember when I first met her. She looked a bit fragile and the first time she fell in class I assumed that she was going to cry. But she didn't. She just smiled, got up and tried to do the moves again. "Tsukiko-sensei, are you alright?" "Oh yeah I am alright. Just excited to try your cooking. Ichigo tells me that it is the best!" "Really?! Then I am going to make something extremely delicious for you sensei!" I just giggled. She definitely is an amazing child.

"So is there anything that I should be worried about when I get to your house Ichigo?" I whispered to him. "Hmm, I say the only thing that you would have to worry about would be my dad." "Why your dad?" "You'll see once you get there. Oh and maybe you should duck once you walk in alright." "Uhh ok." After walking for about another 10 minutes, we had finally arrived to Ichigo's place. 'Kurosaki Clinic, nice.' As we walked towards the front door Ichigo said to me, "Remember to duck." Yuzu took out her keys and opened the door. "We're home. And we have a guest too." Yuzu headed towards to where I assumed was the kitchen. Out of no where, I heard something that sounded like a stampede. "IIIICCCCIIIIIIGGGGGOOOOO!!" There I saw a middle aged man running towards where Ichigo and I were standing. He jumps and with his right leg sticking out, he was about to hit Ichigo. "Duck!" But I didn't. I was just in the state of shock since I have never seen someone do this. Ok sure I have seen something like this but not a middle aged man. I found it pretty funny actually. He was coming close. So I did what my instincts told me, I kicked him.

I brought my leg back down. Ichigo just looked at me, well, staring would be a much better word for it. 'Is he alive?' The man stood up and exclaimed, "Wow that is some kick you have there young lady!" He stood up and gave me a genuine smile and held his right thumb up before saying, "My name is Isshin Kurosaki! It is nice to finally meet Ichigo's girlfriend! I shall finally have some grand children!" "He/she is not my boy/girlfriend!" We both screamed pointing towards one another. 'Awkward!' "Come on Tsukiko, let's go to my room while we wait for dinner and start on that 'project' we have for class." "Uhh ok. Nice meeting you Kurosaki-san." I told Ichigo's dad. "Please call me Isshin" he yelled as we were heading up the stairs to his room.

After walking up a couple of more stairs, we finally arrived to Ichigo's room. Well it was kinda obvious since there was the number 15 on it. He opened his door and welcomed me inside. I walked towards his bed and sat down. "Alright let's get this 'working together' thing started. Hey where is Kuchiki?" Before Ichigo was able to reply, I heard something in the closet moving around. I was getting a bit freaked out because it's a freakin closet! You never know if a body can come out of it or something. Oops, I spoke too soon. The closet door had opened and out of it came a body, falling too the ground. "AHHHH!" I screamed bloody murder. Slowly the body started moving on it's own. "WHAT THE HELL ICHIGO! YOU HAVE A ZOMBIE NOW!?" "Could you please stop yelling!" 'WTF!' Apparently it was Rukia who had fallen from the closet. Wait what? "Rukia why the hell were you in the closet? And Ichigo, why the hell was Rukia in the closet?!" "Pipe down woman! Jezz, Rukia basically lives in my closet so no need to freakin' scream!" "Alright, I'm sorry. Jeez just got a bit freaked out alright. Alright so now can we get to business? I need to talk to my other partner and all so please make it quick so I can eat, have a nice chat with Ichigo's family and then go home to my house." "Wait you have a partner already? Who?" "Now that's my dirty little secret Ichigo" I stated with a wink towards Ichigo. For a moment I swore I saw a slight hint of pink, but I may have been hallucinating or something. "It does not matter whether you have a partner or not. I want you both to work together alright." Rukia said with her boss-like attitude. We just both nodded. "So this is how it is going to work. Ichigo, you have a portable phone right?" "It's called a cell phone, and yes I do have one. Why?" "Tsukiko, give Ichigo your phone number." "Fine. Give me you cell." Ichigo handed over his cell phone to me and I put my number in there. I called my number off his and the next thing you hear is Serj Tankian's "Sky is over" as a ring tone. "Alright. I got your number and you have mine. We are good to go." "Ok this is how it is going to work. Whenever one of you guys encounters a Hollow at any moment, call one another. Even if you have your 'partner' Tsukiko, I still want you to call." "Got it." Both Ichigo and I said at the same time. "Ichi-nii, Tsukiko-sensei, dinner is ready!!" We all looked at one another and then me and Ichigo went downstairs while Rukia remained up in Ichigo's room until he could bring her food.

Dinner was an interesting event. Ichigo was once again surprised when I also knew his other sister Karin. I would teach her some soccer moves whenever I would get bored on some Fridays. Isshin asked me where I worked and I told him I was Yuzu's dance instructor. I somewhat regretted telling him because then he got down on his knees right next to me and started thanking me for his daughter's "wonderful and youthful growth in skill" and such. Then he went to this one rather large poster of a woman, who I learned was Ichigo's mother, and started saying how their children are growing up so fast. Then Karin and Ichigo started attacking Isshin while Yuzu and I just sat there watching. The next thing you know, me, Ichigo, and Karin were in front of the TV playing Wii. The game: Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

"That's it Tsukiko! I'm sooo gonna beat you this time!" Ichigo exclaimed with an amount of anger in his voice. Well he didn't sound angry, more like annoyed at the fact that I kicked his ass with Zelda/Sheik. "No way! You're not gonna win Ichigo!" The next thing you know, there was a loud voice coming from the TV saying WINNER. Turns out I won again. "Woo hoo! Oh yeah! I'm the champ!" I grinned and then said, "Don't worry Ichigo. I can always train you or something. Hahaha." "You cheated you mad woman! I always win." "What you're accusing me of cheating! How dare you. You hurt me right here Ichigo. points to heart I may never forgive you." My voice sounding as it was hurt, but really I was just playing around. Why? Because it was fun and Isshin was there watching too. I gave a wink to Ichigo telling him to play along to. Hmm I wonder how this would turn out. "Wait don't. Please forgive me because if you don't, I might kill myself in despair. Tsukiko, I'm sorry. Please accept my apology." He replied and had his right arm out, waiting for me to grab it. "YES I KNEW IT!! I knew you two were boyfriend and girlfriend. Let me get my camera!" Before he even made a step towards the staircase, Ichigo made the move and smacked him in the head. "We were just playing around old man!" Karin and I just stood there laughing at the scene. I looked at my cell phone and noticed that it was close to 10. 'Damn I should go now.' "Umm Ichigo, Isshin." They both stopped their fighting and looked at me. "I want to thank you for your hospitality, but I should head home now since it's getting late." "Oh yes that reminds me, girls time to go to bed. Say goodnight to your dear father, brother and his lovely girlfriend." "She's not my girl friend." Yuzu and Karin said their goodnights, but I got a hug as well. "Goodnight Ichigo, Isshin. I'll see you later." I was putting my shoes on and got my bag, ready to walk out the door when I was stopped. "Wait you can't walk alone this late at night. Ichigo can walk you." "Oh no it's alright. I'm fine. I-" I felt someone grabbing my bag. Ichigo was there, sweater on and holding my bag with that serious look and scowl on his face. "C'mon. Let's go." "Right. Goodnight Isshin." "Goodnight and hope you can come again soon."

I always loved walking at night. The sky looked beautiful with all the stars shining and the moon as well. Ichigo and I were walking down the street, both of us quiet. "Hey Ichigo" He kept looking forward and replied with a "Yeah?" "Do you really think this whole partner thing would work out? I mean this is my first time working with another Shinigami." "Don't worry about it. I think that it will work out. Trust me alright. I have your back and you have mines right?" I smiled with his answer. "Right!" I glimpsed towards him and I saw him give a small smile. "You know..." He looked at me this time "you should smile more often. You have a nice smile." Th-thanks."

We finally got to my house and walked up towards my door. "Thanks for walking me back home Ichigo. And I had a fun time at your house too." "It was no problem and I'm glad that you had fun. You know, maybe you should come over more often. You're always welcomed to come no matter what." "Thanks and maybe you should come over my place sometime soon. Hey why don't you come over tomorrow so we can talk business and maybe train with some double team moves or something." "Yeah sounds good, oh and here's your bag." "Alright then. Thanks and I'll see ya tomorrow I guess. Night Ichigo." I replied with a grin. "Night Tsukiko." With that we went our separate ways. He goes home, while I go inside. I take off my shoes and walk up towards my room. Inside I throw my bag to the floor, attach my iPod to the radio and go into my bathroom and get ready for bed. Once I am done with my nightly rituals, I say goodnight to the picture of my family, play my "Sleep" Playlist and drift off to sleep waiting for the morning's rays or at least my alarm to wake me up for tomorrow.


	8. Strange Creatures and a Tour

Chapter 8: School, Strange Creatures, and a Tour

Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

* * *

A big flash of light was the first thing that I woke up to this morning. "Gah! It burns!!" I covered my face from the evil light source that deprived me from my sleep. Three minutes later, my alarm went off. "The world hates me today. Not letting an innocent person get any sleep." I ripped the sheets of my bed slowly and sadly. I wanted to get a little more sleep but knowing me, I wasn't going to get any. '_Grrr..._' I did my normal business and all, but once when I was going to put on my leggings, I stopped. "Hmm, do I have time to do this?" I looked at the clock and noticed that it was 7:14. "Damn I don't have enough time. I'll work on it this weekend." I continued putting on my clothes and then I grabbed my backpack.

As I was about to put a book in there when I noticed a stuffed dog. "Oh yeah! I almost forgot about you." I took the stuffed dog out and ran towards my room. I got Luna's pill and stuffed it into the dog's mouth. I waited for a couple of seconds, and finally there was movement. "Tsukiko! Finally! Did you not know how stuffy it is inside of that bag u left me in?!" "Jeez sorry. But hey, now you have a body of move around in. And if you're quiet enough then maybe you can come to school with me." "Ok!" I just sweatdropped. '_Well that got her to shut up._'

I left the house about 10 minutes afterwards. _'Oh joy! I get to go fall asleep in school and get insulted by some of these losers. And not to forget there is Keigo. Speaking of the devil._' "Tsukiko-san!" I stopped and turned around. There, walking towards me was Ichigo, Keigo, Mizuiro, and Chad. "Good morning Tsukiko-san. How are you this lovely morning?" "I'm doing fine now leave me alone Keigo." I attempted to walk away, but someone grabbed my wrist. I turned around, about to yell at the person when I noticed that it was Chad. "You dropped this." He opened his left hand and there I saw my iPod. '_How did that end up falling?!_' I took the electronic device out of his big hand and gave him a hug. "Thanks Chad!! I don't know what I would have done without it!" "Tsukiko, why can't you give me a hug like that huh?" "Because you're an idiot." I stated with a serious face. I was about to walk off again when another hand stopped me.

"Hey Tsukiko, why don't you just walk with us since we are here and all." Ichigo suggested. "And I'll make sure that Keigo doesn't bother you ok?" He whispered in my ear. "Alright. Guess I'm walking with you guys on this bothersome day to school." "ALRIGHT!" Keigo made a dash to try to give me a hug, but was stopped with a kick in the back that made him tumble right past me. "Will you quit it already Keigo!" Ichigo was tired of his antics so I guess he had to kick him. '_Man I wanted to be the one to kick him and all._'

"Tsukiko-san, do you have any plans for after school?" Mizuiro asked. "Yeah I kinda do why?" "Aww man I wanted to ask you out on a date?" '_I thought he was into older girls?_' Ichigo, Chad, and me had the same thought in our heads. "Mizuiro! How can you do this to me? I wanted to ask her out! You backstabber!" Keigo claimed as he pointed his index finger to Mizuiro. "Well I just wanted to give it a shot ya know." "I'll try! Tsukiko wanna- hey where did they go?!"

Now this was way better. It was nice and calm as I walked with Ichigo and Chad. '_So I guess Ichigo is gonna come over tonight. Did I even end up cleaning my place? Hmm I wonder what Hitomi is bringing me for lunch today? Better be something good 'cause I-_' "Tsukiko-san are you ok, you seem awfully quite right now." "Huh?" Both Ichigo and Chad were looking at me. '_Oops, must have been in a daze for a while._' "Yeah I am totally fine. Just thinking and all. Man I really didn't want to wake up today. Curse you evil sun!" I screamed as if I was going crazy or something. And it seemed that I had amused both Chad and Ichigo since it looked like they were gonna laugh or something. A few more minutes of silence and there it was our hell hole. "Aw man!"

Classes have seemed to go by so much faster. Before I knew it, it was already lunch. '_Shut up you damn stomach. We're gonna get food so wait before I_-' "TSUKIKOOOO!!" Hitomi came bouncing about from behind me. I swear, I felt as if my heart was gonna jump out of my chest. "Hitomi, please don't ever do that again. You freakin' almost scared me to death." "Yes! Then my mission is soon to be complete. Buahahaha!" '_Oh god this girl had finally lost it. Oh food!_' "So Hitomi my wonderful best friend, what did you bring me for lunch on this oh so glorious Friday?" Hitomi gave me a blank stare. "Oh snaps I knew I forgot something." '_Nooooo!_'

"Please do not, I repeat DO NOT ever do this to me again!" Unfortunately, I fell for one of Hitmoi's pranks. Never come between me and food, that's all I gotta say. "Tsukiko, you should have seen your face, it was the funniest sight ever." Hitomi was laughing so hard, literally since she was rolling on the floor, laughing. "Whatever." I stated in a huff after I took a bit from the onigiri that she brought for me. "So what are we gonna do today afterschool?" '_Oh crap! If I tell her that I'm hanging out with Ichigo, she is gonna start. Damn I can't avoid it. OH! Genius plan thought up._' "Well you said you wanted to come over right?" "Yes..." "Ok cool. 'Cause you're not the only one that's gonna come over." "Who else is coming?" '_Here it goes..._' "Ichigo Kurosaki."

I knew she was gonna do this to me. After I told her that Ichigo is coming over, she went all lovey dovey on me saying that I like him and love him and junk like that. '_I am just friends and partners with the guy. How can I fall for him?_' School was just about to end. Since our sensei forgot the lesson plan that was suppose to happen today, we ended up doing whatever we wanted. That was the problem for me since I didn't know what to do to kill time. So I did what any "normal" person would do. I put on my headphones and listened to music.

"Oi Tsukiko. It's time to go." '_I must have knocked out. But now I can leave_.' "Alright alright, I heard you Ichigo." We grabbed our bags and then headed towards the lockers to change our shoes. I got out of these boring white shoes and places on my awesome Converse shoes. '_Hooray for Converse!_' Once my awesome shoes were placed on me, I went to go look for Ichigo. Apparently Hitomi had something to do before she was gonna come over. '_I bet she is gonna go and make out with Den or something. Where is Ichigo? Oh there he is_.' "Hey Ichigo, you ready to head out?" "WHAT?!"

I guess Keigo heard me because he went ballistics. '_Here we go with the crying._' "Tsukiko-san is this why you had rejected me?! Just to go out with Ichigo?" "Nice going Ichigo, getting the hot chick." Mizuiro told Ichigo. "WE AREN'T GOING OUT!" We both screamed to Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. It was pretty sad but funny watching a crying Keigo on the floor, sucking his thumb as he rolled about and Mizuiro giving tips about who knows what. Oh well. '_Boys are really strange creatures._' If only you could see how big the sweatdrop on my head was growing as each second passed.

We finally were able to ditch the two idiots thanks to the help of Chad. We were walking along the sidewalk when something kicked my back. "What the hell Luna! Stop kicking me!" Ichigo just looked at me as if I had gone insane. I removed my backpack and opened it up to reveal Luna breathing as if she had no air or something. '_Do plushies need air?_' "How can you do this to me Tsukiko! I could have died in there!" "Hey you have one of those too?" Ichigo asked. "I am not a thing!" Luna screamed and tried to throw herself towards Ichigo. I just held onto her little plastic leash. "You have one Ichigo?" "Yeah. I put him inside a lion stuffed and named him Kon. Annoying perverted lion." "I wanna meet him!" Luna said happily with a gleam in her button eye, if that's possible. '_Oh god I got stuck with a perverted mod soul._'

After walking for a few minutes, we finally arrived to my house. "Nice place you have here Tsukiko." Ichigo complimented as he walked inside my house and removed his shoes. "Thanks. Make yourself comfy, I'm gonna change out of this uniform. Oh and you can leave your stuff here in the living room." I head towards to my room and closed the door, ready to change into something comfy.

Ichigos POV

After Tsukiko left upstairs, I began to roam around her place. I started with the current room that I was inside in: the living room. It looked like any living room, except for the fact that there were a few family pictures. I left the room and went through the kitchen and then I reached an extra room. I opened the door and inside I was amazed at the sight. All over the walls there were drawings that looked amazing. Two electric guitars and an acoustic one was in one corner of the room. A desk was there that held drawing material and a music sheets. There on the same desk, there was a family picture. I walked towards it and picked it up. '_This must be her family._' They all were smiling at the camera as the picture was being taken. '_Wow Tsukiko looks a little different here._' "Hey."

End of Ichigos POV

"Damn Luna. I swear, there is like something wrong with her mentally. I barely leave her out of my sight as I changed and the next thing I know she's gone! Must have gone to look for Ichigo's mod soul, what's his name? Oh yeah Kon!"

As I went into the living room, I noticed that Ichigo wasn't there anymore. '_He must have gone wandering around the place_.' I headed towards the one room that always seemed to attract people. '_There he is_.' "Hey." He turned around and there I saw him holding my family picture. "Oh sorry for wondering around. I just wanted to get to know the place and yeah." "It's alright. People sometimes have the tendency to do that in my house." "This is your family huh?" I walked towards Ichigo and stood next to him.

"Yeah that's them alright." I smiled as I looked at the picture. "What happened to your parents? I know that they passed away but how did it happen, if it is ok for me to ask?" I remained quiet for a minute or so. '_Why does he want to know? I guess it's time for me to tell him how I became a Shinigami._' "You might wanna sit down. It's going to be a long story." I sat on the small couch that, miraculously, was able to fit in this room. He followed my example and sat down on the couch as well.

"This all happened about a year ago. My family and I were at a park enjoying ourselves before it happened. We were just there when I heard a noise at first and I began to panic. It was a Hollow. I have been able to see and hear them ever since I was little. Kai, my older brother, was able to too. Suddenly we heard a crash and I knew it was the Hollow and my family ran for it. I didn't. I was too preoccupied looking for Daisuke." "Who's Daisuke?" "He-he was a Shinigami. I met him when he was patrolling around the city. Once he finally arrived, he told me to run. I ran towards my family when I heard a growl and then a scream. The Hollow had ended up behind them and with one swipe, it killed my parents. Kai and his wife were alright.

"I didn't know what to do. I was there, just staring at the scene before me. Daisuke began to fight again but he was suddenly injured. I ran towards him, crying, and he asked me, 'Tsukiko, do you want to help your family? Protect the living and the dead?' I told him that I did. And that's when I became a Shinigami for the first time. The strange thing was that once I touched his Zanpakutou, I felt a rush that I have never felt before. I had become a Shinigami. I was able to destroy the Hollow and then I had to send both Daisuke and my parents to Soul Society. That's what happened."

I was looking down towards the ground, not even daring to look up. That's when I felt something wrap around me. '_Ichigo?_' "You're a brave and strong girl you know. I'm glad that I am finally getting to know you more and more." Oh the words that he just spoke to me made me want to cry. Instead, I just returned the hug and said, "Thank you." We remained like that for a while until we pulled apart. "Now about that training." I said with a grin.

We had left my music/art room and headed towards another door. I opened it and began to walk down the stairs; Ichigo followed along. Once we got down there I heard one word come out of Ichigo's mouth: "Wow."

The room itself was huge. The floor was made out of wood. There are mirrors on one side of the wall and on top of those mirrors there are curtains that allowed for them to be covered. One side of the room had a fridge, a couch, and a book shelf, where there was CDs, DVDs, a radio, a TV. Next to it was a wardrobe, in which I keep practice weapons. On the other side of the room, there was a punching bag, treadmill, and a bench. '_I love this room._'

"This room is awesome. What do you use it for?" Ichigo asked amazed. It was as if he was a kid in a candy store. "Mostly for making dance routines, as you can tell by the mirrors, and I also train down here with my partner." I stated proudly. "When am I gonna meet your partner? Is he a Shinigami?" "You'll see when they get here. So what do you want to work on first?"

Ichigos POV

'_Did I even bring clothes to train in? Oh crap._' "Uhh Tsukiko?" "Yeah what's up?" '_I can't believe I forgot my own clothes. I thought I had left it on my desk. Unless Yuzu took them and thought it was dirty_.' "Do you have any spare clothes that I can probably borrow? I kinda forgot them at home." Tsukiko had on this thinking face as if she was trying to remember or not. "Yeah I have some. C'mon it's in my room."

As I headed towards her room, I was thinking how it would be like. '_I doubt it would be all girly. And perhaps not plain either. Hmm maybe it's_-' "Oh since we are up here I might as well show you around." She showed me where the bathroom was and the extra guest rooms. "The first guest room that I showed you used to be my brother's before he moved out and all." "Where does he live now?" I asked out of curiosity. "He lives in the Unites States." '_He lives that far?! How does she manage to survive?_' "My brother mostly sends me money to be able to pay off stuff. We own the house so we don't have to worry much. Now let's keep moving on."

The second guest room was a bit larger than the first and had the other bathroom in it. "This was my parent's room." This room had such a homey feeling to it. '_Does she allow people to sleep in here?_' "When people come over, how do you decide where they sleep?" "I just let them choose where the feel more comfortable. Most would choose this room, except when Kai comes over." She said with a smile on her face.

"Now let's go to my room!" We left her parent's old room and headed over to hers. On the door there was a crescent moon drawn on it and there were random drawings too. Some of which were stars, chibi anime characters and pictures. She opened her door and I was amazed.

Tsukiko's room was amazing. The ceiling was painted a midnight blue and had glow in the dark stars. The walls were white and had many different posters of bands and movies. There were pictures all over the walls there were music notes painted everywhere. She had a drawer with a radio and there was a closet as well. There was also a desk which had a mirror. Next to her bed there was a table with a black lamp. Overall, her room was really cool.

"I guess you like my room?" I looked at her and gave her a small smile. "It's really cool." And with a large smile, she replied. "Yea, well I spent most of my life making this room fit with the things that I like. Eh and who knows, if I have kids in the future and if I still live here, this could be their room. Now let's get you those clothes and get to training!"

End Ichigo's POV


	9. Training and A Lil Heart to Heart

Chapter 9: Training and A Lil' Heart to Heart

'_Good old training room. What would I do without you?_' I was already dressed in some knee high Capri sweats and a muscle t-shirt. Under it, I had a black sports bra that was on top of my bra. What I wanted some extra coverage. You may never know what can happen. Anyways, I was waiting around listening to some music when I heard Ichigo come in.

"Why do you even have the boy sweats from school? We keep them in a locker ya know." '_Uh oh. I have been caught red handed. Hahahha._' "Well, there was this one time when I kinda forgot to where some leggings and instead I had shorts that were up to my thigh. So I kinda swiped them from some random locker. The idiot forgot to close his locker." I said with a smirk on my face. "Did you know that, that was Keigo's locker?" My face had gone from a smirking one to one of pure horror. "WHAT?!"

I kept shuddering that I had worn Keigo's sweats. Even though Ichigo informed me that they were brand new the day he bought them, I still had the nasty feeling. I mean, these were touched by Keigo.

"Ok I'm over it now. Let's get to work." I walked towards the closet, took out a bamboo Shinai sword and one in the form of daggers and tossed the sword one to Ichigo. "Why do you have two that are small?" He asked confused. '_I wonder if he knows about Shikai and Bankai? Eh, I'll just say that's how it is._' "My Zanpakutou come out in the form of sais. That's why I have two of them. Ok how bout we have a small battle to see how we fight. Hmm maybe we should have someone watch. I mean it would be-"

_Don't you want to hold me baby, Disappointed, Going Crazy-_

"Hello?" I said once I picked up the phone. "Tsukikoooo, I am outside your house. Open up for me!!" Hitomi said in a very happy tone. "Alright." With that, I hanged up my cell and looked at Ichigo. "We gots ourselves a spectator." I stated with a grin on my face.

I went up the stairs and to the door. I opened it and there stood Hitomi, smiling and holding a duffle bag. "Tsukiko, I brought some stuff for training." "Nice job! We are sooo gonna need that. I'll get your bag and you can go change upstairs. "Yes ma'am!" She grabbed the clothes that she was going to need and headed upstairs as I waited downstairs. '_Hmm, what would be some good training besides the one-on-one fight? Maybe I can have Hitomi throw us some of her energy balls and we can use it to work on dodging and team work. That sounds good!_' "Alright I am good to go!"

We both walked back down to the room and Ichigo was there, just sitting down on the couch and waiting patiently. "I'm back Ichigo and I brought my partner." He stood up and once he saw Hitomi, he looked shocked and surprised. "Hitomi Aichi is your partner?!" "Yuppers! Tsukiko and I are partners in this Hollow business." Hitomi replied all cheery-like, as always. "Are you a Shinigami?" "Hitomi is not a Shinigami. Actually, we don't know what she is. But she can sense Hollows and Shinigamis, and use her spirit energy to create energy balls that can shock a Hollow." I stated proudly about my buddy's powers. "Wow", was all that Ichigo said for second time today. Not that I am counting or anything.

"Alright people, here is the game plan. Hitomi is going to be watching Ichigo and I spar and then we are going to change it up. Hitomi is going to be throwing us some of her energy spheres and we both have to dodge it and try to work on some double team moves. Are we clear?" I said pacing back and forth as if I was a Captain, giving orders to my soldiers. "Yes ma'am." Ichigo and Hitomi said. '_Hehe I should be a Captain._'

Hitomi's POV

Tsukiko was standing at the right side of the room while Ichigo was across from her. "Alright get ready!" Ichigo held out the Shinai sword as Tsukiko had her "wood sais" at the ready. "Alright on my mark. Three...two...one...GO!"

They both ran towards one another both striking at the same time. Ichigo swung his sword and tried to hit Tsukiko on her right arm, which was her strongest arm compared to the left. She backed off in time and was not struck. Tsukiko began her close ranged attacks. She kept swinging each of her sais, trying to hit Ichigo, while he kept on dodging the attacks. Then she made a jab strike towards his stomach with her left arm and he had dodged it. '_Bad move_.' I thought, but right when he did dodged, she kicked him with her right leg.

Things kept going at a simple place. Ichigo had actually struck Tsukiko a couple of times in her arms and once on her left leg. Tsukiko also was able to give Ichigo a few hits. She had managed to hit him twice on both of his arms and at his legs too. It was also funny when she would kick him for the fun of it. They kept going for another ten minutes 'til I called it off. "Alright you both are done. Break time!"

Once the words left my mouth, they both dropped to the ground. "You guys can't be that tired?" Both Tsukiko and Ichigo gave me a look as if it was saying 'Are you crazy or something?' "Hitomi, you had us battling each other for almost an hour. I just sweat dropped. "Really? I didn't even realize that." If they were both standing, they would have just fallen to the ground.

End of Hitomi's POV

"What do you guys want to drink?" Hitomi asked as she was standing in front of the fridge. "Get me a Gatorade and water!" I half said and begged. I was dying of thirst after almost fighting for non-stop. "I'll have the same." Ichigo stated as he too was dying of thirst. Once Hitomi handed us out drinks back, we chugged them down on the quickness.

'_Jeez, Hitomi can be a freakin' drill sergeant with how she had us going._' I thought as I finished gulping down the last of my Gatorade.

"So I was observing you both and there aren't many flaws with your fighting techniques. There were only a few. Tsukiko," Hitomi looked at me, "you shouldn't toy with your opponents too much. It will only screw you over. Ichigo," She now turned her attention towards Ichigo, "you shouldn't do many head on attacks without thinking them through. If it goes wrong, then you can get severely injured."

What she said was right. I do sometimes enjoy playing around with my prey. I couldn't help it; it's just too fun sometimes. I moved from sitting down to lying down on the floor. It felt comfy for some odd reason because whenever I did this, the floor felt somewhat hard. I looked at where I was lying down at to realize that my head landed on Ichigo's lap. I tried to hide my blush but I don't think that it worked much.

Ichigo's POV

After hearing what Hitomi said about me being too straight forward and doing head on attacks, I was thinking about the possible consequences. I just wanted to shiver at what could happen.

I kept on thinking when something landed on top of my lap. I looked down and blushed. Tsukiko had just laid her head on my lap, but when she noticed something about where she laid on top of, she looked that it was my lap and blushed. Just seeing her blush had made me blush even more. She quickly got up and said sorry. "It's alright." '_I didn't mind at all._'

End of Ichigo's POV

"When do you guys want to start the next part of training?" Hitomi asked us. I was now currently sitting on one of my couches after the whole Ichigo incident. "I am good to go now. How 'bout you Ichigo?" I asked while getting up and stretching my arms. "I'm ready to go too." I looked at the corners of my eyes and saw Hitomi grinning. "Alright! Now it's my time to shine and shock!"

Me and Ichigo were at one side of the room, waiting for Hitomi to begin. "Hey Tsukiko." "Yeah Ichigo?" "Do Hitomi's energy balls hurt?" I didn't know how to answer this question. I mean sure I have been shocked by her a couple of times, but I rather have him experience it. "Your just gonna have to wait and see."

"Ah! Damn that one hurt!" Ichigo yelled as he was shocked by the energy ball. "I'm sorry! I didn't see that one coming so I couldn't warn you on time." I apologized as I kept doing some of the energy balls as well. "It's alright. Tsukiko dodge!" I moved to my left as a rather large energy ball passed my right side. "Thanks! Ichigo jump upwards and then moved to your right!" He did what I had told him too. I looked towards Hitomi and saw that she was rather enjoying the show since she was laughing like a lunatic. "Stop that freaky laughing!!"

After another 30 minutes, we were finally done with our training. "Wow you both did really well." Hitomi praised us as we were once again on the ground, trying to catch our breaths. "Ah save it for some other time!" I said, getting up off the ground going towards the fridge. "Oh oh bring me a Monster please!" I looked at Hitomi like if she was insane. "There is no way in hell I am going to give you one of those right now." I grabbed three water bottles and passed them to Ichigo and Hitomi. "Thanks." Ichigo replied to me after he had gulped half of the water bottle. We spent the remaining of the time just relaxing and drinking the water of life.

"What time is it?" Hitomi asked while we were watching TV in the basement. I looked at my cell phone and took notice that it was about 6:38. "It's 6:38." "I should be heading home now. I'll catch you guys later!" Hitomi stated as she gathered up her belongings. "Bye" Ichigo and I said at the same time. First there was three and now there are two.

"So what do you want to do now?" I asked while I stretching on the floor. "Hmm maybe I should call my dad and tell him I might be late for dinner." Ah yes Isshin the crazy father who attacked his son for coming late. "Hey why don't you stay here for dinner? And you can shower here too if you want cause you kinda smell bad." I sniggered as I told him the last part. "Hey I don't smell!" "Whatever. Call your dad up and tell him you staying for dinner. Imma go shower." I went up the stairs to the hallway, Ichigo following behind "Alright I'll call him up." "Great!" I then went up the stairs, headed to the bathroom and took a nice, relaxing shower.

Ichigo's POV

I heard the shower go on. '_I guess I should call my dad now._' I went through my backpack and took out my cell phone and called the house. "Hello, Kurosaki residence." "Hey Yuzu is dad there?" "Yeah he is one moment Ichi-nii. Dad Ichigo is on the phone!"I heard some yelling or screaming and then my father was on the phone. "Hey dad-" "Ichigo! Where are you right now?!" I can just picture him pointing towards the phone right now. "I'm at Tsukiko's house and she asked if I wanted to stay for dinner." "Ah yes your girlfriend-" "She's not my girlfriend" "Yes you can stay over for dinner. Be home before 12 and don't do naughty things!" "DAD!" Then there was a dial tone. '_I swear that man is insane._'

I put my phone away and began to wonder what to do while Tsukiko was showering. I went to look at her DVD case and searched for something to watch. I decided on Kill Bill. I popped the DVD into the player, turned on the TV and began to watch the movie. As I watched the movie, I started thinking about Tsukiko when she had he head on my lap. It felt as if we have always done it and I felt really comfortable with her there. And there was that blush on her face. '_Girls are soo confusing._'

"Hey Ichigo!" I jumped where I was sitting, there I saw Tsukiko. Her hair was dripping wet and she had on some black Capri pj bottoms that had blue and yellow stars and moons while her top was black as well and had a moon and star. "Yeah?" "You can go shower now. I left you a towel there." "Oh thanks." I grabbed my bag and headed towards the shower.

End of Ichigo's POV

I heard the shower go on so I began to think what to make for dinner. "Hmm maybe I can make some shrimp ramen, rice, uhhh perhaps some teriyaki chicken. Ah I know what to do now!" I headed towards the kitchen and began to cook. I took out the necessary items and began to cook. I place the uncooked rice into the rice cooker and allowed it to do its job.

'_I am sooo glad that I took some cooking classes with mom and that Hitomi taught me too._' I put the ramen into the pot and added all of the ingredients. As that was cooking I chopped up the chicken and began working on that. After another 33 minutes, the food was ready to eat.

"Something smells really good." A voice said as they entered the kitchen. "Thanks." I said as I turned to face Ichigo. There he was, dressed in his school pants and he had his white button up shirt unbutton, revealing a white muscle t-shirt and his hair, wet. "Do you need any help setting up the table?" He asked. "Yeah that would be great."

Once we finished setting up the table, we began to eat. It was quiet, like if neither of us knew what to start a conversation with. '_Ah crap not again with the awkward silences! Wait I gots something!_' "Hey Ichigo?" "Yeah what's up?" "How did you become a Shinigami?" "Well what happened was that out of no where, Rukia shows up in my room saying that something was near. I was a bit freaked out 'cause she came out of no where. All of a sudden I ended up kicking her and we got into this whole ordeal about Shinigamis and Hollows and before that she used some Kido spell on me that did not allow me to move. Then there was a Hollow attack outside my house. Karin was being held captive and Yuzu came towards me, hurt, saying to go save Karin.

"I used my strength to get out of the kido and went to confront the Hollow. It was about to bite me when Rukia got infront of me and took the attack for me. The Hollow retreated for a while and that's when Rukia asked me if I wanted to protect the people that I loved and cared for. I of course said yes. Then she gave me her powers. That's how I became a Shinigami."

"Wow!" That was the only thing that I was able to say at first. "We got our powers for the same reason. To protect those we care for and love." He smiled at me and said yeah. I smiled. "We are so going to be an awesome kick ass team!" I stated with a huge grin on my face. "We sure as hell are! By the way the food is really, really good." "Thanks! Before I was never able to cook; even if my life depended on it. But thanks to my mom and Hitomi, I learned to cook almost anything!"

"Do you miss your parents?" I was quiet at first. "Yeah I do. If I was only fast enough I could have saved them. But I guess I couldn't. I would only blame myself saying that it was my fault. Kai made me realize that it wasn't my fault. It just happened. So now I accepted that it was not my fault."

"I was in the same position as you were." I looked at him. '_Right. Perhaps it was because of his mother's death._' "When I was 8, my mother died. I blamed myself for it. My family kept on telling me that it wasn't my fault. I never believed them. But now I have finally accepted it. Now I protect people." "That's a good way to see it. Now to get rid of this depressing mood, how bout we watch a movie and eat ice cream?" He looked at me with those amazing eyes and said, "Good idea."

Once I finished cleaning the table and the dishes, I went to the fridge, looked through the freezer and pulled out vanilla and rocky road ice cream. I got out two spoons and headed towards the living room. "Don't we need bowls to eat ice cream?" I gave him a 'why do I need bowls' look. "My good friend, you shall now eat ice cream out of the carton. Now what movie shall we watch?" Ichigo got up from the couch and headed towards the DVD shelf. I sat comfortably on the floor and opened the lids. "How about this one?" He showed me the movie Troy. I gave off a big smile. "Good choice!"

We were half way through the movie and half way through both ice cream cartons when Ichigo's cell phone went off. "Hello?" I was just there watching him instead of paying attention to him instead of the movie. "Yeah alright I'll be there soon. Bye." He then hanged up the phone. "Thanks for having me over for dinner and the training. I gotta head home now since the old man just called me." "No problem. Tell your dad that I said hi and your sisters too." "I will." I walked him to the door and he got his stuff and his shoes on. "I guess I'll see you later." "Yeah." We just stared at each other for a long time. I started blushing and then looked down. He chuckled and I looked up. "Hey what are you laughing about?" "It's nothing. Just that you looked cute." The next thing you knew was that he was the one blushing. "Imma go now. Bye." I smiled, "Bye then." He opened the door, waved, and left.

I closed the door and I then headed to the kitchen, put the ice creams away and went to the bathroom. I did my nightly routine, and then headed to my room. '_Goodnight mom and dad. I love you._' I then closed my eyes and let the darkness consume my eyes.


	10. Oh Great, Not Don Kan'oji!

Chapter 10: Oh Great, Not Don Kan'onji!

As quickly as the weekend came, it sadly had to end as well. And it didn't help that I woke up late. "AAHH I'M LATE FOR SCHOOL!!" I quickly rampaged through the closet digging out my uniform after doing my womanly business. "Alright, there's the skirt, the shirt, the tie, wait where the hell is my leggings?! Ah no time!!" I went to the living room, literally yanked Luna, grabbed my backpack, put my shoes on, and ran all the way to school.

I was breathing heavily by the time I got there. '_Wow a new record on getting to school on time._' "Ohayo Tsukiko-chan!" Orihime was walking towards me with Tatsuki behind her. "Ohayo." I was still by the doorway breathing as hell. "Wow did you just run here?" I gave them both a look saying 'no I skipped and leaped here...of course I ran here'. I was about to walk inside the class room when I heard a whistle and someone say, "Wow Tsukiko-san, you're looking sexy today. Are you trying to become a bit more feminine for me now?"

Oh I began to twitch. '_Keigo Asano, you just sentenced yourself to death. And damnit! Why couldn't I find my leggings!_' I turned towards Keigo and there he was. Mizuiro, Chad, and Ichigo were behind him and I guess they noticed the flames that were radiating from my body. I placed a fake smile and walked towards Keigo. "You like what you see, Keigo-kun?" I said in a girly voice. Everyone's mouth had dropped at the scene. I mean who wouldn't. "Of course my darling. How about you and I go out sometime-" That was the last thing everyone heard from him. No I didn't kill him, even though I sometimes wish I did. I simply just gave him a kick in the chest and he went a flying across the hall.

"Anyone else wants to hit on me?" I gave all the guys in the classroom a glare. Like good little boys, they shook their heads saying no. "Good!" I said in a normal tone. I walked towards my seat and sat down. '_Jeez this is going to be a long day._'

Luckily for me, the day actually went by fast, thanks to the fact that we mostly went over some of Shakespeare's work. I love his story _A Midsummer's Night Dream_. It was freaking awesome! The day was finally over and I got my gear and shoes on. I was about to leave when I heard someone yell out my name. Well it sounded like two voices. I turned around and there I saw both Ichigo and Rukia running towards me.

"Oh hey you guys what's up?" Rukia looked at me and said, "Oh we were just wondering where you were off to?" '_Uhh I did tell Ichigo that I do work everyday except Friday's right?_' "Rukia I told you already that she is going to work." An annoyed Ichigo said before I was even able to respond. "For some reason I don't believe you Ichigo! I think that you might be saying that to go do something with her." Then she got this weird look on her face, "Ah Ichigo, you naughty boy. You both were about to go do something dirty huh?"

"WHAT?!" We both yelled together at the same time. '_This girl has some issues or it must be that entire lingo she learned on her own._' Ichigo told me that she had learned most of our 'slang' off of some mystery manga. "Rukia, I do have to go to work. That's how I pay off my bills ya know." She got really interested now. "Really? Where do you work?" "God, she never listens to me." I heard Ichigo mumble to himself. I just chuckled. "I work at a dance studio." Now she had a confused face. "Dance studio? What's that?"

"Alright you guys, I have a two guests here who want to see how you guys do. This is Rukia and Ichigo. Please treat them kindly and welcome them." Then there was a chorus of various greetings. Rukia was really curious about my job so she came, and dragged Ichigo right behind her. '_Poor Ichigo._' "Alright, seeing as that our dance show is this weekend, we have to now review all of the routines."

Ichigo's POV

I was, once again, dragged by Rukia to where Tsukiko worked. When we were walking, well both girls were walking, I was being dragged, Tsukiko told me that she now combined both the hip hop and the jazz classes together to be able to determine how the scheduling was going to work. Once we got there, I noticed that there were about 27 girls and 3 boys there. Tsukiko left to go change, while Rukia and I waited.

"Ichi-nii!" Yuzu walked towards me. "Hey Ichigo, who's that?" "That's my little sister. Hey Yuzu." "What brings you here again?" '_Hmm how should I respond to her? I could always tell her that I was held captive by a crazy girl. Or-_' "Ichigo thought that he should come over to his girlfriend's job and see how she does." "Rukia!" "Alright you guys, I have a two guests here who want to see how you guys do. This is Rukia and Ichigo. Please treat them kindly and welcome them." Tsukiko had walked in and I began to blush. She was wearing some green Capri sweats and a black sports bra. '_Mustn't blush in front of everyone!_'

Me and Rukia spent the entire time watching the kids dance. '_She is a really good teacher. I mean, I wouldn't have a lot of patience of make sure the kids get the moves done correctly. She would make a good mom one day._' "Ow!" I looked towards my right and I saw Tsukiko next to a little girl who had black hair and green eyes. The girl's right leg was bleeding. "Damn these freaking floors. First I get a cut on my thigh and now Kimi gets injured." I walk over to her and kneeled down. "Need help?" She looked at me with those gorgeous red, ruby eyes and nodded. "Can you take Kimi to the other room for me? Imma hammer down this nail so the other kids won't get injured." "Yeah I'll take her." I lifted Kimi up and took her to the other room.

I placed Kimi on the closet chair I found. Once I took a glimpse of her face, I instantly noticed that she was crying. I grabbed the nearest napkin and found a water bottle. I wet the napkin and began to remove the blood. "Your name is Kimi right?" She simply nodded. "My name is Ichigo." '_Crap I don't know what else to talk to this kid about._' "Are you sensei's boyfriend?" Kimi asked with a soft voice. I immediately knew that I was blushing. "Well, I'm not her boyfriend. But can you keep a secret?" Her green eyes gleamed with excitement as she nodded her head. "I kinda like your sensei." Yup I knew I was blushing.

'_Man confessing to a little girl about having a crush is really weird._' "Are you going to tell her?" "I don't think I should tell her yet." "Are you going to wait until you are in love with her?" Now this literally caught me off guard. Am I going to wait? I mean, it's just a crush right now. I smiled at the girl. "Yeah I'm going to wait."

"Finally I got that damn thing back in its place." Tsukiko walked into the room and opened up a drawer. She took out a first-aid kit and from the kit she took out rubbing alcohol and a band-aid. "Alright sweetie, this may sting a little." Kimi winced at first when the alcohol was placed on her open wound but soon calmed down. Once the wound was cleaned, Tsukiko put the band-aid on her. "There. You're good to go now." "Arigato sensei. Arigato Ichigo-kun." With that she ran back to the dance room.

'Thanks for the help Ichigo." I gave a really small smile and told her that it was no problem. "Well I got to get back to work now." She got up and was about to leave the room when she stopped. "You coming?" "Yeah." I got up and walked back with her.

End of Ichigo's POV

"Alright. I guess I will see you all tomorrow. Bye you guys." A chorus of 'byes' had chimed out of the kids. I walked towards Ichigo and Rukia. "So what did you think Rukia?" Her eyes held a gleam showing that she was in fact amazed. "How were they able to do all those moves? How are you able to perform such stunts?" Me and Ichigo just sweat dropped. "Years of practice my friend. Years of practice."

We left the dance studio and began walking back. Yuzu had left when Karin came to get her. Apparently Karin wanted to leave the house since 'Goat Chin' was annoying her. "Well I head this direction so I guess I'll see you guys later." "Alright then. Bye." "Bye Tsukiko." I simply waved and headed back home, where I ended up doing homework, eating, showering, and sleep.

Tuesday was just like Monday, except for some strange events and some that didn't happen. Besides the fact that next week on Monday was the last day of school, I was really happy to be in school that day. I was there on time, I didn't forget my leggings and I had a pretty good breakfast and made a good lunch. "Ohayo!" I said once I walked in through the doorway. Suddenly Orihime popped out, arms crossed in the shape of an X and suddenly said, "Bwahahahaha!" My face most likely gave off a confused look. I was about to walk out of the classroom, but something blocked my way. Apparently Ichigo was behind me and he had a similar face as mine.

"That's a faint reaction you both gave me. Don't you know what this is?" Orihime asked us. I couldn't even say the damn name of that show, so Ichigo was the one to say it. "D-Drop In..." "Bingo! It's a fun show, huh? Then you should come with us and Bwaaaa-" Orihime began. Luckily for both of us, Tatsuki came in and stopped her. "Banzai!" "T-Tatsuki-chan! What? What?" A surprised Orihime said. "Yeha, yeah...I'll go with you to the 'Bwahaha'." Tatsuki said as she dragged Orihime away. All I heard off of Orihime was "Why?" "So I guess I ain't the only one who doesn't like that show, eh Ichigo." I told him as I turned to face him. "Yeah."

"Yo, Ichigo. Tsukiko-san." Once Ichigo turned around, I peered over his shoulder. "I'm Asano." "I'm Mizuiro." And Chad was there. '_Oh lord please no_.' I thought as all three of them had their arms crossed across their chests. Both Keigo and Mizuiro said at the same time, "Bwahahahaha!" Me and Ichigo remained silent. No words were able to escape our lips. Class had finally begun and the boringness began

It was lunch time, which meant that I was going to be with Hitomi and Den. '_I knew I should have gone somewhere else. Hells I would rather be with Keigo right now then stuck with the two love birds._' I was crying in my head, when my fake tears were interrupted by Hitomi. "Tsukiko guess who is going to be in town today!" "I don't know nor do I care." "C'mon Tsukiko. Alright, let me make it easy for you." She crossed her arms and then said the phrase that I had been hearing all day. "Bwahahahaha!" Den was just smiling at his girlfriend. "I guess you kinda know who it is now Tsukiko, thanks to that look on your face." Den told me. "Unfortunately, yeah I do know."

"Tsukiko, you should come with me and Den to see Don Kan'onji. C'mon pretty please." '_There is no way that I am going to see the idiot perform my job!_' "Sorry, I have to work today late." She began to pout and started ranting about how I should have a break once in a while and all that crap. '_Doesn't she remember that this is my last month working at the dance studio for a long time? I mean I was told by the freakin' owner that I need to have a high school diploma now or something like that. If I was to even make a dance routine, it would only be for volunteer work. That means I won't be getting paid! What a drag. Well at least Stripes will pay off my bills. That reminds me, I should pay him a visit after work then head home._'

"Tsukiko, are you even paying attention?" I looked at her and gave her a blank look. "I'm sorry were you saying something?" She then started to fake cry and told Den, "See, after all the love and care I give her, she completely ignores me." "There, there babe. I'm sure she was paying attention." Den said as he hugged her, while having a sweat drop on the back of his head.

School had ended and work went by rather fast. I was walking to Stripes' place. I had my iPod on and was listening to Katy Perry's song _I Kissed a Girl_. It's a rather catchy song. Once I got to the place, I walked in and there he was. "Hey Stripes. Long time no see." He got up and ran towards me. "Tsukiko-chan how I missed you soo much. Now give me a hug!" I simply moved to the side as he ran past me and fell to the floor. "Jeez, you old perv, relax. I wasn't even ready for the hug." "Tsukiko-chan, why must you call me, Kisuke Urahara, a perv?" I just gave him a dull look, "Because you told me that you were a perverted business man once." He masked his face with his fan and said while striking a bizarre pose, "I have never said such a thing." "Yeah, yeah and I'm the Queen of England. Now c'mon let's go talk and all."

We sat down and began to talk. But before that, I was jumped by both Ururu and Jinta. Sweet kids, but Jinta can be a pain in the ass sometimes. Tessai was kind enough to bring some water and tea. I never liked tea much since I mostly drank caffeinated drinks. "How is your job as a dance instructor coming along?" "It's going great, until I am now gonna get fired since I don't have a high school diploma." "How much longer until you leave?" '_Man this sucks._' "My last day is on Friday. Then it's the dance show and I'm done." I said in a very depressed mood.

"You do know that besides Kai, I'm here to help you with money stuff right?" I looked at him and saw that he was being serious. I sighed. "I know that but I do not want to use your money, Urahara. I want to be able to manage on my own." He moved from his spot, sat besides me, and gave me a hug. "I know you do, but you have to remember that you are 15. You need to enjoy life right now. Don't worry about this anymore, just enjoy your last few days of work and have fun." I smiled. He always knew how to cheer me up. I think that's why dad and mom wanted him to be my godfather. They just ended up not choosing one and let me decide on my own.

"Urahara?" He released me from the hug and looked at me. "Would you like to be my godfather? I mean, only if you want to?" I didn't get an answer, but instead I got a huge massive hug. "Of course silly! I mean I did help you with your Shinigami powers and used to baby sit you and Kai when you were little." "Thanks!" I looked over his shoulders and noticed that it was 8 already. "Urahara, can you let go now? I have to get back home." "Do I have to?" "Yes you do." He, reluctantly, let me go and got up. I got up as well and walked towards the door with him behind me. I gave him a hug and said, "Night godfather. I'll come and visit soon." "Night Tsukiko-chan!" And with that said, I walked back home.

It was around 8:16 when my cell phone vibrated. I was still walking home. I flipped open my cell phone and noticed that there were two messages. One from Hitomi and the other from Ichigo. I opened Hitomi's first and it read that I should at least drop by the live show and take a look. '_Ha! The only reason for me to go there would be if there was a ghost or a Hollow!_' I then opened Ichigo's text. '_Great, I thought too soon._' Apparently there was an earth-bound ghost that needed to be sent back. '_Damn it!_' I ran towards the abandoned hospital where they were filming at.

"Ichigo! Rukia!" I had arrived when they were barely starting. "Tsukiko! Glad to at least have some company who doesn't like this show." Ichigo said with a smirk. "Wouldn't dream of missing this." I said in a sarcastic tone and then turned to Rukia and asked while putting my hair in pig tails, "So what's the problem." "There is an earth-bound soul that needs to be sent back. So I need both you and Ichigo to go and do what you have to do."

When they began to shoot the scene, I saw they ghost. '_Did I just hear him say something about a pink Cadillac?_' When Kan'onji began his dumb exorcism, he did the most dumbest move ever. He stuck his weird looking cane into the souls' soon-to-be hole, where it's Hollow transformation would be complete. "Oh hells no!" I ran to where they were filming. Ichigo was besides me screaming to stop. We both jumped over the fence, and as I did that, I rummaged around for Luna's soul pill. Once I grabbed it, I left it in my hand just in case. "Stop that!" Ichigo yelled as he was closing in on Kan'onji.

Security came out of no where, well it seemed like that to me, and jumped us. I tried to evade them, but no luck. Then I quickly swallowed the pill and there I was in my Shinigami form. Rukia screamed to Ichigo, telling him to get near her to change into his Shinigami form. But it didn't help that she was also stopped.

No One's POV

"Get off me!" Luna squirmed in Tsukiko's body as the security held onto her. Tsukiko just sweat dropped at the sight. The screams of the soon-to-be Hollow got much worse as he was close to the transformation phase. His chains began to break and that got everyone worried. In the crowd, Orihime, Karin, and Chad were able to hear the antagonizing screams. "No!" Rukia screamed. '_Damn it!_' thought Tsukiko as she positioned herself for the upcoming battle. "Let me go, dammit!" Ichigo yelled as he tried to escape the grasps of the security team. Then out of no where, all you see is a cane hitting Ichigo's head. '_What a nice entrance Urahara._' Tsukiko sarcastically thought. '_But it was kinda funny to watch Ichigo tumble._'

"Who was that?!" Ichigo yelled in a pissed off tone, as he held his head. "Hi there." Urahara semi-waved with his fan. Tessai was simply standing there, as if he was a body guard. "Sandal-n-Hat dude..." "Hi Godfather!" Tsukiko waved to him as if she hadn't seen him today. "Godfather?!" She sighed, "I'll explain later." "She's right. Don't just stand there, you have to hurry." "O-oh, yeah." And with that, he ran towards Tsukiko.

Meanwhile with Ichigo's soulless body and Luna inside Tsukiko's body, Urahara was able to get them both and take it with them, while Rukia questioned as to why they were there. He simply said one word, "Pardon?"

"Stop!" yelled a running Ichigo, as Tsukiko was behind him. Ichigo had jumped between Kan'onji and the soul, while Tsukiko was getting ready to do her part. "Whooooaa!" Kan'onji went flying and Tsukiko couldn't help but laugh at the scene. "Buahahhaha!" she laughed while clutching her sides. "W-what the hell, Boy?! And why are you laughing, Girl?!" "You can see us too, eh?" "Of course. I am the charismatic spiritual medium for the new century! Oh, I see! You both must be fans who died and stayed fans, eh, Boy and Girl?" This surely made Tsukiko stop laughing. She was about to pounce like a lion or a kitten with its ball of yarn, but Ichigo caught her waist. "Let me at him! Let me at him!" Ichigo briefly let her go and ran to Kan'onji and said, "I'm so gonna pound you, asshole. Or I'll just let the feisty one do it for me." "Oh, oh! Can I-" Tsukiko's sentence was interrupted with a scream.

Ichigo let Kan'onji go and all three of them faced the ghost. "It's too late..."Tsukiko said as she stared at the ghost, now becoming a Hollow. The ghost glowed for a bit and then exploded. "Where did it go?" Ichigo questioned. "I'm not sure," was all that Tsukiko could say. "He disappeared," was the response Ichigo gave. "Yeah! Mission complete!" Kan'onji screamed. Ichigo's and Tsukiko's face couldn't believe it. "For real?!" Ichigo had asked. "No. There is no way that it can end that fast. It's impossible." Tsukiko tried to explain. In the crowd, Rukia couldn't believe it either. She looked at her cell phone and noticed that there was no way it was over. She looked up and there was a ball of light heading downwards.

"Yeah! Thank you!" Don Kan'onji was telling his fans. "Up, Ichigo! Tsukiko! Look up!" Rukia screamed towards the two Shinigami. Tsukiko, Ichigo, and even Don Kan'onji looked, and it was not a good sight. The Hollow had begun to form right in front of their eyes. Green arms and legs began to appear as the Hollows torso was a burgundy type of color. All three were worried now. The former ghost's head had come out of the Hollow body, but as soon as it came out, a white mask also began to form. "Wh-what's that?" A bit frightened Kan'onji asked. "That's what's called a 'Hollow'." Tsukiko began. "And it wa-" Ichigo was interrupted the Kan'onji with him saying, "I sense it...I sense it...the smell of a super dangerous ghost, all over the place." '_What an idiot._' Tsukiko thought as she and Ichigo sweat dropped. "Well, that one must be the boss of the evil spirits come to take revenge for the one I exorcised!" Kan'onji said. "That's not it..." Ichigo muttered.

"It-It hurts...Feed me..." the Hollow began to say. Ichigo and Tsukiko both got ready to spring into action when they were pulled away. "Wait." Kan'onji said and pushed back both Substitute Shinigamis. "Run away, Boy and Girl!" "Hey!" Tsukiko screamed at Kan'onji, but apparently he ignored her since he was too busy twirling his cane. "Come on, Bad Spirit! The charismatic spirit medium for the new century, Don Kan'onji, will face you!" "FEED ME!" the Hollow screamed as he ran downwards and jumped, with its mouth open.

Ichigo, angry as hell screamed out, "What the hell're you doing?!" As he said this, he removed his Zanpakutou from its sheathe. Tsukiko as well took out Kuro Maho from its own sheathes that were located on her thighs. Ichigo and Tsukiko ran forward and blocked the Hollow from attacking. Both managed to block the Hollow and send it flying towards the entrance of the hospital. "Why don't you run away, Boy!? Girl!?" Ichigo turned around and said to the exorcist, "No, YOU run away already!" Tsukiko was keeping watch, making sure that there was no sudden attack. Don Kan'onji was surprised with what Ichigo had said. "Run away?! What are you talking about?" "Ichigo, it got back up!" Tsukiko said as she prepared herself for an attack. Ichigo turned and stood next to Tsukiko, preparing himself as well. Tsukiko ran forwards first and swung Kuro Maho. The Hollow dodged the first attack. Ichigo attacked with his own Zanpakutou, but missed as well.

"It's just like I thought. Maginficent." Urahara said as he was observing the battle. "But the circumstances couldn't be worse. Now then, what will you do?"

The Hollow was running towards the three in a rapid speed and jumped aiming for Don Kan'onji. Ichigo managed to push Kan'onji out of the way. The Hollow missed them and went straight towards the hospital, making a giant hole. Its head was stuck. "What an idiot." Tsukiko said out loud. "Golden chance!" And once again, Kan'onji went for the Hollow, but was pulled back by Ichigo and Tsukiko. "You're getting outta here!" Tsukiko told him. "What she said" was all that Ichigo said. Both Shinigami teens pulled Kan'onji towards the hospital entrance and went inside, but they managed to break the doors which were made out of a window.

"I see. So you both are choosing that kind of fight, after all." Urahara stated, as he still continued to watch. Rukia began to walk forwards to go into the hospital, but was stopped. "It's alright. Such a weak Hollow won't be any problem for Kurosaki-san and Tsukiko-chan." "But-" "It's not good for the ruckus to get any bigger. And it seems the man called Kak'onji has a bit of power as well. Let's leave this to them." Urahara said while talking behind his fan.

Meanwhile back inside, Ichigo and Tsukiko were still dragging Kan'onji to find somewhere safe for him to linger. "Wh-Why are we running away, Boy and Girl?!" "You're the one who said to runaway!" Tsukiko said, annoyed at the fact that this man would not be quiet. "I was telling you to run away by yourselves! I cannot run away!" Kan'onji told the two. Both Ichigo and Tsukiko got fed up with the man and looked at one another. They both nodded their heads and threw Kan'onji forward.

Tsukiko's POV

As Kan'onji rolled in the ground, I couldn't help but laugh. He kept rolling until he hit a wall. "Why should we run away and you can't run away?!" Ichigo yelled. "Yeah explain that!" I said after him. Kan'onji got up and said, "Well...That's because I...Because I am a hero." "Huh?" Ichigo said out of no where. I just kept quiet to hear what this man had to say. "Boy, Girl, do you know how many ratings my show gets?" '_I don't even watch your show old man._' I thought in my head. "I don't wanna answer." Ichigo stated. "EXACTLY RIGHT!" Kan'onji semi screamed. I just sweat dropped. Kan'onji continued, "Twenty-five percent. Truly, one of every four citizens is watching.." I kept on having more sweat marks as Ichigo was getting anger marks on his. "Most of those viewers are little children." Now this caught our attention.

"The children watch my exploits and let their hearts dance. They watch me going against evil spirits and learn something of courage. Do you both understand, Boy and Girl?" He said, pointing at us. '_Why does he always say Boy first? For once can it be girl?_' "When they are watching, I cannot run away!"

"Kan'onji...You..."Ichigo said. I stayed quiet and thought to myself, '_He is doing all of this, for children to believe and gain courage? Wow that's deep._' "Now, let's go back and fight that monster." Kan'onji began to walk away, back to the entrance of the hospital, when I said, "Wait!" and Ichigo had grabbed his shirt, or what ever it is. "Idiot! No freakin' way!" I told him as Ichigo kept pulling at him. "What if the spectators get entangled?" After Ichigo said this, it had caught Kan'onji's attention. "That thing comes after souls with high spiritual power, like you or me or Tsukiko here. He'll come after us for sure." "If we fight here, there won't be casualties among the spectators" I finished for him. "Boy...Girl...Incredible...You both think of such things while fighting...Boy and Girl-" Ichigo had interrupted him as we both heard the howl of a Hollow. "Hold it. Here he comes." Ichigo said.

As quickly as those words had came out of Ichigo's mouth, the Hollow jumped through the floor while screaming out "FEED ME!" "Bring it o-" Ichigo screamed as he pulled out his Zanpakutou. Unfortunately, it got stuck to the ceiling. "Huh?" He tried pulling it out and I just sweat dropped. "Nice job Ichigo!" I screamed as was getting ready to fight. "Son of a-" He kept pulling at it until it came out. Oh how badly I wanted to laugh, but now was not the time.

The Hollow spat something green out of his mouth and it landed right on Ichigo's hands. "GAAHH! He screamed, "W-what the hell's this?! It won't come off." He swung around his arms and wailed about. The Hollow believed that it was a good time to attack, but he didn't notice me. I jumped to block the onslaught, but Ichigo noticed too and said, "Too slow!" Ichigo was able to attack his left arm as I got his right arm. '_This isn't good. Ichigo can't attack properly since his Zanpakutou is too large._' The Hollow moved back as he roared, but took Ichigo with him since his Zanpakutou was stuck. "He-Hey, wai-" "Damn it Ichigo!" I screamed as I tried to pull him off. I didn't work apparently since the Hollow crashed into the wall and we were dangling for our lives. "AAAAHHHH!!" I screamed as I held onto Ichigo. "Don't let go Tsukiko!" Ichigo screamed to me. "I won't as long as you don't let go of your Zanpakutou!"

The Hollow began hopping, literally, towards the roof top. Ichigo managed to release his Zanpakutou, but we both went flying and rolling on the roof top. "Ow." I held my head as I felt it pounding. "Are you alrught?" A concerned Ichigo asked. "I'm alright. Are you?" "Yeah I'm ok." We got up and got ready for a fight. The Hollow immediately dove for us and we jumped away. Ichigo held his Zanpakutou and I had Kuro Maho out of its sheaves.

There was pure silence for almost a minute, until Kan'onji slammed the door open and screamed out, "Are you alright, Girl and Boy?!" "He's back!" Ichigo whined. "Finally you said Girl first!" I screamed. The Hollow took it's gaze from us and looked at Kan'onji. Instantly it went for him. "Run away, Kan'onji-" Ichigo began as he ran towards him. "Ichigo look out!" I screamed, but it was too late. Ichigo got punched by the Hollow and it spat out the same green slime. "Ichigo!" I ran towards him. I tried to pull him off, but the damn goo got him stuck. "Damn!" He screamed. I kept on trying to pull him out. "Damn stupid goo!" "W-wait!" I turned around and saw the Hollow jumping towards us.

"Shit!" I brought Kuro Maho together, " Kuro Maho, MYSTIC SHADOW-" My attack was stopped since Don Kan'onji stopped the Hollow with his weird looking cane. "Kan'onji..." Ichigo and I said at the same time. "Are you hurt, Boy? Gir?" '_And for once I thought he was going to say Girl first._' "Run away! You're no match for him!" Ichigo screamed at him. "Leave before you get yourself killed. I can handle this!" I screamed at him. "Boy! Girl! I too have some power, if very little. I think I know the difference in power between my enemy and myself. You've both made a deep impression on me. You are constantly thinking of the people's safety first. GREAT! Let me call you both friends, but spelled c-o-m-r-a-d-e-i-n-a-r-m-s." "Um no. That's okay." We both said.

Suddenly, Kan'onji's right hand began to gain some sparks in it. '_Woah! I never knew he had that in him._' "Kan'onji-ryuu Final Super Attack! Kan'onball!" A small blue ball appeared in his hand and he pointed his palm towards Ichigo. The little blue ball floated towards us and I moved to the side. As I did that I began to think, '_is it really gonna cause some damage or what?_' Once it touched Ichigo, a large flash appeared and boom! It had destroyed the goo. Ichigo screamed since he didn't know it was that powerful.

Kan'onji's cane had broken and the Hollow was once again ready. Kan'onji was pushed to the sides, and by the looks of it really hard. "Kan'onji!" I screamed. "Make it a good one." He told us, while holding his thumb up. I nodded and got ready. The Hollow ran towards his body and we both sprung into action. "Not so fast!" We yelled in union. Ichigo was to the Hollows right. I was at its left. We swung together with our blades and sent the Hollow flying towards the rail. Its mask began to crack.

"Sorry..." I began as Ichigo finished for me, "...But this is the end!" We jumped and attacked. I stabbed the mask with Kuro Maho, while Ichigo swung his Zanpakutou. "ALRIGHT!" Kan'onji screamed for us. The Hollow fell and we both placed our weapons in its rightful place.

"Great! Magnificent! Magniiificent! Maagnificeeent!" Kan'onji praised us as he ran towards us. "Kan'onji..." Ichigo said. "Huh?" "Don't get all giddy." '_Haha giddy. That's Hitomi's word._' "Why not, Boy? You and the Girl beat the monster! You should get more excit-" His words we stopped as he saw the Hollow materialize. "What?" He said at first, and then was suddenly surprised when he saw the ghost in his normal form. "It can't be! He's the one I...This..." "That's called a 'Hollow'" I told him, "When the chain attached to a ghost's chest comes off and a hole opens the ghost becomes an unreasoning monster, a 'Hollow'." Then, realization came in for Don Kan'onji. "A hole...in the chest...It can't be...What have I been doing all these years? I am ashamed of myself..." Tears had suddenly fallen from his eyes. I couldn't help, but feel sorry for the man.

"Hey, that's enough crying for now, hero." Ichigo said. "Yeah Kan'onji. Everyone's waiting for you." I said with a smile. Screams were coming from all of his fans. He slowly, but surely, got up and walked towards the rail. I walked and stood besides Ichigo. "What's wrong?" asked Ichigo. "Give 'em what they want." I stated. "That's a hero's job, ain't it?" Ichigo told him. I looked at Ichigo and saw him give off a small smile. '_God his smiles are so cute._' "Boy...Girl..." Kan'onji walked more towards the rail and screamed out, while doing some weird move and that damn arm gesture, "Mission complete! Bwahahahahaha!"

"Boy,Girl, that was a superb fight. I admire both your courage and wit...as well as your strengths." "Aw thanks Kan'onji!" He gave a smile and walked towards me and Ichigo while saying, "Please lend me some of your strength again in the future." He held out both of his hands. "Well..." I started, while looking at Ichigo. "...If it's only once in a while." We shook hands and smiled, well Ichigo grinned. "Thank you, both. Starting today, you both are my Number One Students!" "WHAT?!" I screamed. "I GOT DEMOTED!" Ichigo screamed out.

We got off the roof after saying our goodbyes. Ichigo and I found out bodies and got into them. "We did an awesome job, Ichigo!" I smiled. I felt as if my red eyes were glowing with happiness and excitement. "Yeah, we are a good team." He said as we walked back. We found his family there all happy about the show; well Karin looked as if she was ready to leave the place as soon as possible. "There you are Ichigo!" Yuzu smiled as she ran towards us. "Hi Tsukiko-sensei." "Hi Yuzu." "Ah Tsukiko-chan how lovely to see you this wonderful night. And together with my son, none the less." I just sweat dropped, "It's nice to see you too Isshin." "Can we go now?" Karin began to say.

Walking back home with the Kurosaki's was actually pretty fun. Ichigo and I were behind his family just talking. I looked at the scene in front of me and smiled a sad smile. Apparently Ichigo noticed. "Tsukiko, are you ok?" I nodded and said, "Yeah I'm ok." Ichigo turned to face his father and told him that he was going to walk me home. Isshin of course was fine with it. The told the Kurosaki's goodbye and we left. "Man I could use a shower right about now." Ichigo said out loud to break the silence. I just giggled, "You sure do." "Oh yeah, well you need one too." "Really?" "Mm-hmm." I stopped for a brief second to allow him to walk a little further ahead. Then without further ado, I ran and jumped on his back.

"Hey!" "Onwards my noble steed! To my house so I can shower and smell pleasant for Ichigo!" He laughed and grabbed onto my legs so I wouldn't fall. I wrapped my arms around his neck and said, "Hey Ichigo." "Yeah?" "You're adorable ya know that." "Th-Thanks." He was barely able to mumble out. We made to my house and I hopped off of him. "Thanks for the ride back." I smiled at him. "It was my pleasure. Now, your noble steed must be off to his stable." I laughed at his comment and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You do that then." Ichigo was blushing like a strawberry right now. I giggled and kissed his other cheek. "Bye Ichigo. See ya at school tomorrow." With that I left the blushing strawberry and went into my house. '_Hmm I wonder how school is going to be tomorrow._'


	11. Ishida Uryuu, The Quincy

Chapter 11: Ishida Uryuu, The Quincy

My morning was quite the same. Got up, dressed, did the normal business and ran out. I was smiling today for some odd reason. I have no idea why, but it was a nice feeling. I was waiting for the sign to say that I could walk when I heard my name. "Tsukiko!" I turned my head a bit to see who it was. My smile grew larger. "Hey Ichigo!" By the time he had reached me, he was breathing a bit heavily and looked tired. "Are you alright Ichigo?" His breathe had gotten back to normal and he stood up. "Yea I'm ok. Just that my old man attack me again today. I swear it's getting old." I laughed. "Hey who knows, he might be training ya or something."

We walked together and had finally reached our school. There were students outside just talking and playing around. "I can't wait for summer! Which reminds me, your birthday is July 15th right?" I asked, as headed towards his locker to change his shoes. "Yeah it's on the 15th." After he changed his shoes, we went towards my locker and I took off my shoes. "Any big plans?" "Not really. I'm just going to spend it with my family in a peaceful state. Well hopefully it will be peaceful." We walked up some stairs and made it to the hallway which held our classroom. We were about to go inside when he told me, "It would also be great if you stopped by that day and just hang out. I mean, if you want to." I smiled and nodded my head, "Yeah totally!"

We went to our seats and right when class was about to begin, when Kagine-sensei came in and asked for me, Ichigo, Rukia, Keigo, Mizuiro, Chad, Orihime, and Tatsuki. We all were sent to the principal's office, where Ochi-sensei was there as well and there we had a lecture that was pretty hilarious if you asked me. "Absolutely unbelievable! Do you kids realize what you've done?! Look at this!" Kagine-sensei had grabbed a remote and turned on the television, which showed the Don Kan'onji special. "This video was broadcast all over the country the other day. ALL OVER THE COUNTRY!" The next image that popped out made me laugh. "What is so funny Takeshi Tsukiko?!" He screamed and pulled my shirt so that I would be looking at him. "I'm sorry sir but I couldn't help but laugh at how cool we look on TV." He let go of my shirt and I stumbled a bit, but Ichigo grabbed so I wouldn't fall. "Thanks." I said in a low voice. "No problem."

Then Kagine-sensei stood in front of Ichigo and said, "Kurosaki Ichigo...do you know how much you've shamed our school in this video's broadcast?!" He did the same to Ichigo as he did to me. "Kagine-sensei, I understand why Kurosaki-kun, Takeshi-chan, and Kuchiki-san were called, since they were on TV, but I don't think that there's any reason Inoue-san and I should be here." Tatsuki said to him. "You two were there with them!" Kagine-sensei countered back. "That was a coincidence. We just met them there by chance and weren't involved." She stated back to him. "Tatsuki, how could you?" I fake cried. "Damn you, just trying to save yourselves..." Ichigo said to her as she lowered her left eye-lid and stuck her tongue out. "That's the situation, so we'll be going back to class now. Let's go, Orihime." As that being her last sentence, Tatsuki and Orihime left. '_Damn traitors! _ToT_._'

"Then I will...too." Keigo tried to escape but he couldn't since he was stopped. "Not you! You're just as guilty for bring there and not stopping Kurosaki and Takeshi!" Kagine-sensei told him as he held Keigo by the collar of his shirt. "What's the big deal? Just 'cuz he was on TV?" Keigo said in a confused tone. "WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?! Don't you realize that your lack of self-awareness is the reason you're being pointed out?! Unbelievable!!" By this point, I was simply just staring around the room and looked at Rukia. She winked at me and began to get watery eyes. '_How could I have ever doubted your acting skills, Rukia._'

"I am so sorry. This is all my fault," she began and took out a hankerchief to wipe her fake tears, "I was unable to stop Takeshi-chan and Kurosaki-kun, who both got so excited to try to get on TV. It is all my fault." By this time, Kagine-sensei had dropped Keigo onto the floor. "I truly...desperately...but..." She kept going but was stopped when Kagine-sensei said, "Don't cry, Kuchiki. I understand. It wasn't your fault, okay?" This gave us the perfect chance to escape through the open window. Ichigo went out first, then Chad, Keigo, and Mizuiro. I was the last one to go out. I was about to jump down when a pair of hands grabbed my waist. "Thanks Ichigo." I said and knew I had a small blush on my face. "No problem." He said. Then we ran for it. "You! Stop!" Kagine-sensei screamed, but we were too far to hear the rest.

"All's well that ends well." Keigo said as we all walked around. Rukia, Orihime, and Tatsuki had joined us after the whole fiasco. "It's all thanks to you, Kuchiki-san." Keigo complimented Rukia. "Oh dear, you flatter me." "You idiot, don't praise her." Ichigo said. "Yeah, it sometimes will raise her ego a little too high. And she tried to sell me and Ichigo out." I said as I walked between him and Rukia. "But thanks to her acting, you were able to escape, too." Tatsuki said, directing it to both Ichigo and I. "She is right. That was a-c-t-i-n-g. How could I possibly so something like sell out my friends, Kurosaki-kun? Takeshi-chan?" "You bitch." I heard Ichigo mumble. I moved my mouth towards Ichigo's ear and whispered, "Be nice." "Fine." He told me, but with a blush. Suddenly, Rukia's cell phone went off. And mine did as well. "Now that you mention it, I have to speak to you and Takeshi-chan, Kurosaki-kun." Rukia said to us both. "Everyone, please excuse us." She said and bowed like in the old fashion way. "Yeah be right back!" I said. We all ran to a secluded spot.

Back with the group...

"What the heck?" Keigo being the confused person he is said aloud. "What if Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san...are, like, dating?" Orihime wondered. "No way! Kuchiki-san, at least, isn't interested. And besides, Tsukiko-san is with them. But then again, what if Tsukiko-san and Ichigo are dating? Hmm..." Keigo stated. "But something's suspicious." Mizuiro said to them. "No way! No way!" Chad had stopped for a while and looked up towards a window. He saw a figure, looking down at them, but then the figure just walked away.

With Tsukiko, Ichigo, and Rukia...

Me and Ichigo got out of our bodies and placed them in a secure area, since our mod souls were still at school. All three of us ran to where the report of the Hollow was sighted. Once we got there I said, "Where the hell is the Hollow?" There was no Hollow whatsoever, just a ghost that was huddled up in an alley way. "I don't see a Hollow as well. What the hell's going on? That phone of yours is probably broken." Ichigo said. "I doubt that he phone is broken because Hitomi sent me a text saying that the Hollow was here." I said as I slouched against the wall. Kuro Maho was in my hands since I thought there was going to be a fight. "This is strange." Rukia commented, "I'm sure there was an order saying a Hollow had appeared."

"Hey! You, soul, there!" Ichigo called out to the soul. The soul shrieked, or something, a bit because of fright. Ichigo walked towards him and said, "Don't tell me you got rid of the Hollow?" The soul began to say, "By Hollow, you mean that scary bug-type thing?" "Yep!" I piped in as the soul continued. "I-I-I was s-scared and f-frightened. I thought it was gonna rub me out!" The soul suddenly jumped towards us, crying, with his arms out. Ichigo stucked out his right foot forwards and stopped the soul and said, "Get away from me. I asked you what happened!" "Hold on, Ichigo." Rukia told him. "Did someone defeat the Hollow and save you? If so, what did he look like?" Rukia asked the soul, while grabbing onto its shirt, just like how Kagine-sensei did to me and Ichigo. "Man she is scary sometimes." I whispered to Ichigo. "Yeah she is."

"I-I was scared so I had my eyes closed, so I don't-" He did the same thing he tried to do to Ichigo, but Rukia responded the same way. I sighed, "I don't think this is going to help." "I agree. Alright. Soul burial time. Here goes." Ichigo said, as he rested his Zanpakutou against his right shoulder. He bended down and was about to when the soul screamed. "Ahhh! What is that? 'Soul Burial'? What are you gonna do with that sword?!" "Just do it Ichigo." I told him. The next thing we all say was a glow of blue and then a black butterfly. "Well, now that that is done, let's head back." "Right."

Apparently by the time we got back into our bodies, there were people looking at their ranking. "Hey Orihime, Tatsuki. I had to deal with something for work. So what're we looking at?" I semi lied to them. "Oh it's our class's ranking." Orihime said. "Third...You're doing as well as ever." "Good job Orihime." I told her as I patted her back. I walked up a little closer to look for my ranking. Keigo and Mizuiro were right next to me. "Well, girls aside, besides Tsukiko since she is a comrade, at least it looks like none of our comrades betrayed us by entering the top 50." Keigo stated with a smile. "Look closer." Mizuiro told him. And Keigo did so, only to find Ichigo ranked number 23.

"Wh-Wh-WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?! TWENTY-THIRD?!" He screamed out. "It's a lie! Why are you so high?!" "Man, shut up. I've got nothin' to do since I go home so early, so I study." Ichigo stated to him. Keigo once again screamed and pointed at him while saying, "There's no way you have nothing to do! I invite you to hang out all the time! I see...So that's what was behind you refusing all my invitations! Deviant! Nerd! As a parting gift, we'd like to give you these lovely soda-bottle gla-" With a punch to the face, he had finally shut the hell up. "Don't want them." "Ichigo, I say you let me punch him next time." I asked him. "Be my guest." "I guess you really study, huh?" Mizuiro asked Ichigo. "Well, yeah. With this orange hair, all kinds of things are tougher for me." Ichigo had told him. "Oh...You've got stuff to deal with, huh? I...would like to give you this lovely, dorky headband as part-" this time Ichigo cut off the headband, while I punched. "I said I don't want it!" "Yay, another point for Tsukiko and Ichigo!" I cheered.

Keigo screamed again and said, "Fine! I understand! I'll never invite you to hang out ever again!" He ran back towards us again and said, "Hey Chad, Tsukiko. Let's us go hang out. We're not in the top 50, like some people." Chad then pointed towards the list. I, instead, walked towards the list and pointed to where I was at. Chas was number 11, while I was number 4. This time, both Keigo and Mizuiro screamed and ran away from us. Keigo screamed, "I never thought you three could be such devils! Never in a million years! We'll never hang out with you ever again!" With that they ran off screaming.

"Aiya, you made 'em cry." Tatsuki mentioned to us. "If we're devils, what's that make the top ranked person?" Ichigo questioned. "Well, let's have a lookie at who the top ranked person is." I bounced back to the list and looked at the name. Ichigo followed my example, without the bouncing, and looked at the list. "Ishida...Ametatsu?" Ichigo said. "Are you sure you're pronouncing or even reading it properly?" I asked, while reading the name again. "Never heard of that name." Ichigo stated. "It's Uryuu. Ishida Uryuu-kun." We looked at Orihime as she said that. "You know 'em?" Ichigo asked her. "He's in our class." She told him. Ichigo had a shocked face. '_Jeez Ichigo that's a bit sad._' "Forget it, Orihime. He can't remember a name or a face to save his life. Let's go." Tatsuki said and then began to drag Orihime. "Jeez Ichigo, how come you forget so easily?" I asked. "I have no idea. Besides, was there such a person?"

My cell phone went off. I grabbed it and looked at the text message that Hitomi sent. "There's a Hollow near. But dont panic. Cuz u look fresher than lettuce!!" I sweat dropped and closed the text. I looked at him and gave Ichigo a serious face. He simply nodded but Keigo interrupted our leaving by asking us to do karaoke. "Kurosaki-kun! Takeshi-chan!" '_Thank you God for Rukia right now!_' We turned to look at her. "Come with me for a minute." Rukia grabbed his wrist as he grabbed my hand. The three of us, now running.

"It's a Hollow." She said, as she let go of his hand. "I know. Tsukiko got a message from Hitomi saying that there was one. It'd better really be there this time." Ichigo said, but we were still holding hands. '_This feels different, but in a good way._' Ichigo noticed that we were still holding hands, and he suddenly let go. With that, the feeling was gone. "Sorry." He said. "It's ok. I didn't mind." We kept running. "Shut up. We're going." Rukia told him because of his last remark. As we ran, Ichigo accidentally brushed against someone's shoulder. "Sorry." He told him and kept running with me and Rukia.

After searching for a long time, it was already dark outside. I was lucky enough to have Luna go with my body to work for me. "After all that, there's no Hollow again." Ichigo complained. Rukia was dragging Ichigo's soulless body while I sat on the floor. "Shut up. Just get back in your body." Rukia commanded. "Seriously, do something about that worthless phone." "Are you saying that it's my fault?! I just tell you exactly what appears on the command receiver." "So I'm telling you, hurry up and get it fixed." He told her once he was back in his body. Me, I had to wait until Luna came back. "Ichigo, " he looked at me, " I don't think that there is anything wrong with her phone. I mean I get the same signals from Hitomi and they are accurately correct like Rukia's cell phone. But what if there was someone else going after the Hollow?" I told him.

"Dissension in the ranks?" A new voice said. We turned around a looked at the owner of the voice. There, walking before us was what appeared to be a guy around our age, wearing white with blue stitching. He had bluish black hair with two long strands in the front and glasses. "What a disgrace." He had continued from his previous statement. "Good evening, Kurosaki-kun, Kuchiki-san, Takeshi-san." "Ichigo, he can see me." I worriedly told him. "Who are you? How do you know our na-" Ichigo questioned him, but was interrupted by him. "Kurosaki-kun. You can see ghosts, can't you? You too, Takeshi-san?" This shocked all of us. '_How the hell does he know about us being able to? And how the hell can he see me?!_' "What're you talking abo-" Ichigo was once again interrupted. The teen in white looked towards his left and said, "A new Hollow has appeared."

"What?" Rukia asked, and then her phone rang. "One really has appeared. We've got orders." "Which way? I'll handle it since I am still in Shinigami form." I told her. "That way." The guy in white said, while pointing to our right. But he continued, "If you don't even know that much, how can you call yourself a Shinigami?" Suddenly a large blue bow appeared from his wrist charm and shot and arrow towards the direction of the Hollow. It had instantly destroyed the Hollow. '_Wh-What is he? Who is he?_' I asked myself. We were all still in a state of shock, until Rukia said, "The signal disappeared..." "What the hell are you?" Ichigo said the question that was lingering in my head. "Ishida Uryuu, Quincy. And I hate Shinigamis." "What the hell?" Ichigo stated in a question form. "Don't you understand? This is what I mean...Kurosaki Ichigo, Takeshi Tsukiko, I hate you."

After that eventful night, the next day we were back in school and I was walking with Ichigo. "Shit! What the hell's with him?!" He told me. "That's what I want to know." I said in a pissed off tone. The guy's words still lingered in my head. This just got me more pissed. "Why should I have listened to that crap from someone I've never met before and don't know from Adam?! That bastard...Next time I see him, he's seriously gonna get it!" He told me. "I totally agree with you Ichigo. But I don't think that's his name." I told him. I think Ichigo was starting to rub off on me. "That bastard...What was his name again...I...shi...da...um...Willy..." "No that's not it Ichigo. That sounds like some lame comedian." "Alright let me try again...Ishida...Ishi..."

"Talking about Ishida-kun again?" "Gah! Don't pop out like that Orihime. You almost gave me a heart attack." "Sorry." "Inoue!" Ichigo said, "Uh...no..." "You mean Ishida Uryuu-kun, right?" "There you go! That's his name." I muttered. "Yes, that's it! You sure know a lot, Inoue!" Ichigo said, as he did some weird as pose. Orihime followed along with his pose and said, "Not that much, but Ishida-kun's in the handicrafts club with me, so I at least know his name." "Handicrafts club?!" Ichigo and I yelled at the same time.

We followed Orihime as she led us to the classroom where the club meets. There, we opened the door and peaked inside. '_There's our target._' "There. That's Ishida-kun." Orihime pointed out towards us with her voice. "Hey, it is him." Ishida was currently sitting at his desk reading a book. "So it's the handicrafts club, right?" I asked Orihime. "Yeah. Oh, look. Such perfect timing, Michiru-chan brought her torn stuffed animal." "That's a convenient development..." Ichigo said in a bored tone. "Just watch" was all that Orihime told us to do.

Ishida grabbed the stuffed animal and threw it up in the air. While it was still in the air, he took out his sewing kit and grabbed a needle and tread. Immediately in such a fast speed, he sewn up the torn animal and tossed it back to Michiru. "I-It's fixed! Thank you, Ishida-kun." She told him. "No problem. That was nothing." He told her. "Oh, uh...right. Sorry." She had apologized. "He'd be a good guy if only he didn't talk like that." Orihime told us. "Hmph. Weird guy." Ichigo stated. "Mm-hmm." I hummed out. We then both began to walk away. "Hey, Kurosaki-kun. Tsukiko-chan." We both stopped as she continued sating, "Did something happen with Ishida-kun?" "No, not really." Ichigo said. "We were just curious. It was nothing." I told her. "Oh, okay." And with that we walked away.

School was finally over and we left on the quickness. Our mission: to find Ishida and confront him. We followed him going up some stairs when he had stopped. "Are you going to follow me all the way home, Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko?" "So you knew." Ichigo said. "When did you notice?" I asked Ishida. "I knew since you both were spying on me from the classroom door with Inoue-san." "Oh? Pretty impressive. You got skills." Ichigo had complimented him, with a hint of sarcasm. "It's because you always let your spirit power leak out like an idiot, Kurosaki-kun. Even a monkey would notice." "I knew we should have taught you that first." I muttered towards Ichigo. "What did you say?!" '_Oh boy, he just got Ichigo pissed._'

"Apparently, you lack the ability to sense other people with high spirit power. As proof, you've never noticed my existence until today. Even you Takeshi-san, did not notice this even if you can hide your spirit power." "Well, excuse us." I said. "Yeah, I'm not good at remembering people's faces and stuff." Ichigo told him. "That's not what I mean." Ishida turned to face us and continued, "I noticed...the day you transferred to our school...the inordinate height of your spirit power. And the fact that you acquired Shinigami powers around mid-May. Even you too Takeshi-san. But with you, at first you didn't hide it but a year later you were able to. As well as...Kuchiki Rukia's true identity." '_How can he know this much about us?_'

All of a sudden, white ribbons had surrounded him. "Spirit threads." Ichigo and I said at the same time. "Yes, spirit threads. Spirit energy in the atmosphere condensed and visualized. And..." Ishida suddenly ran towards us and with both of his hands, grabbed the air in front of us. There, two red spirit threads appeared in his hands. "This is..." Ichigo began. "It's both of your spirit threads. Don't you know? Shinigamis' spirit threads have a different color." He had ripped our thread and then released them to only disappear before our eyes. "Why don't we have a match, Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko? I'll make you understand which of us is superior...and that Shinigamis are unnecessary in this world." Ishida said.

Meanwhile in front of Urahara Shoten

"Alright, do or die! Jan-ken-GO!" Two small children were playing rock, paper, scissors. The red head, Jinta had one the match since he had rock, while the Ururu had scissors. "Look away." Jinta yelled as he pointed to his right. "Again! Jan-ken-GO!" This time, Ururu had won with the victorious paper. "Look away." She said and pointed upwards. "Go." She said in a soft voice as Jinta's head followed that direction. He screamed in defeat and Ururu just laughed while holding a broom. "Okay, so you clean up today, Jinta-kun." "I haven't lost! I haven't lost yet! I said it was two outta three!" Jinta stubbornly stated. "But you never sai- "Ururu sadly was interrupted by receiving a nuggie. "Owwooowwwoooowwwoooww!! It hurts! It hurts!" "Don't argue, I said we're going again!"

Suddenly Jinta was grabbed from the back of his collar and was lifted about three meters from the ground. "What might you be doing, eh, Jinta-dono?" The giant Tessai asked him. "None o' yer beeswax-uh...business, Tessai-san." Then a foot appeared out of no where and had kicked Tessai from behind. Apparently by the looks out it, it felt like a tap to Tessai, but Rukia felt the pain on her own foot. "Do you need help with something, Kuchiki-dono? Oh. What happened?" he asked her. "Is Urahara...available?" She asked with watery eyes from the pain.

"Well, well, if it isn't Kuchiki-san. Need something-" Urahara was at first, fanning himself when he suddenly got smacked in the head with Rukia's cell phone. Thus, leading him to fall back to the ground. "What d'you mean, 'Need somthin?'?! No matter how many times I called, you didn't answer, so I had to come here!" Rukia complained to the man. Urahara had gotten up from the floor and responded, "Oh, sorry about that. We've been rather busy here lately, too." "Hey, lady, where's that cocky, spikey-haired kid you always come here with? Although, I do hate him...so it's better if he doesn't come." Jinta first had asked, but then his tone changed to a much happier one since Ichigo wasn't there. "Hey, Jinta!" Urahara told him, as he waved his fan.

"I have some things to ask you." Rukia told Urahara. "What is it?"

Back with us

"A match?" I asked, as we were there discussing what Ishida proposed. "You and us?" Ichigo asked him. "That's right." "Hmph! Freakin' ridiculous!" Ichigo yelled. "What was that?" "Why should we have to do that? It's stupid. I dunno what you have against Shinigamis...but it's got nothing to do with me and Tsukiko." Ichigo stated. "You're running away, eh?" "You can't provoke us, Ishida." I told him. "Yeah, and I'm just saying, that between us and you, it'd be no competition. Let's go Tsukiko." Ichigo told him and we began to walk away. "Oh, that's right, I remember now." We stopped walking and listened to what he was going to say next. "You're a Shinigami who got his strength from Kuchiki-san, Kurosaki-kun. In other words, a temporary Shinigami. Without her permission, you can't even lift one finger." '_That must have hit a nerve. How dare he say something like that._' "What did you say..."

Rukia's POV

"Quincy...Long time since I heard that." Urahara said, as Tessai placed tea in front of me. "It is most certainly a nostalgic sound. For almost 200 years, I haven't heard that name." Tessai told us. "What does that mean?" I asked, now becoming more interested about the subject. "The Quincys...were anti-demon clan that specialized in anti-Hollow combat which were scattered across the globe. And their clan was destroyed over 200 years ago." Now this had certainly caught my attention. "Destroyed?" I asked him. "That's right. In today terms, humans with power like Kurosaki-san and Tsukiko-chan became aware of the existence of Hollows. And in order to stand against them, they began to train. It is said that was their beginning. In order to defeat the Hollows the same way as Shinigamis. However, there was a defining difference between them and the Shinigamis. That was whether to kill or not kill Hollows.

"As opposed to the Shinigamis who purified Hollows with a Zanpakutou and sent them to Soul Society, the Quincys adhered methodically to killing the Hollows. If you think about it...it's quite a human choice to make." Urahara then said what a Quincy would think, "Hollows eat human souls. Why should we have to calmly send something that injured and killed our friends and family up to Soul Society?!" After he said that, he went back to his normal serious tone, if that was possible, and said, "It's easy to see why they would feel that way. So they stubbornly tried to kill the Hollows believing they were avenging their comrades. However, it was because of that belief...that they were eventually destroyed."

End of Rukia's POV

"Fine. We'll give you a fight, if that's what you want." Ichigo said as he began to unzip his backpack, while I opened mines as well. I got Luna out of the bag and she immediately glomped me. "Tsukiko, I was beginning to get scared from being in the bag." I just sweat dropped and said, "Luna, you were there for only like 8 hours and I had the bag opened halfway for you." "Oh. I knew that!" "Alright Luna, time for us to work." I put my hand through her mouth and looked for the pill. '_There you are! How come I barely noticed that the pill was silver? I am slow sometimes and that is sad._' I took out the silver pill and inserted it in my mouth. In an instant, my Shinigami self came out and Luna stood up with my body.

"Damn it, Ichigo!" I heard Ichigo's mod soul, Kon, yell. "Even if this was by Nee-san's orders, what the hell d'you mean by stuffing me in your bag, huh?!" "God he is so freakin loud." I told Luna, who was now holding my backpack and her stuffed animal self. "Uh huh." "We're switching." I heard Ichigo tell the stuffed lion. Suddenly Kon got scared and said, "Wait a minute! Again?!" Ichigo with his left hand stuck it into Kon's mouth and searched for the little pill. "Gotcha." Ichigo pulled out the pill and said "Uck" as he cleaned the drool with his shirt and then popped it into his own mouth. Ichigo in his Shinigami form had came out and stood next to me as Kon was now in his body. "Kon, watch the fight. Watch me and Tsukiko pound this guy concave!" Ichigo instructed him. "Luna, I say you follow him." She nodded to me and ran to the sides with Kon. "Okay now, go ahead and explain. The rules of this match, that is. Come on!" I told Ishida as Ichigo smirked. '_This is going to be one fun match._' I looked at Ichigo and grinned. '_Fun indeed._'


	12. The Match Starts and Chad Rises

As you guys know, Bleach's story line and characters belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me. And the title, of course belongs to My Chemical Romace from their album, The Black Parade

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Chapter 12: The Match Starts and Chad Rises

Staring at one another was what we were doing right now and it was in silence. "Okay, now got ahead and explain the rules of this match." Ichigo stated since we were waiting for quite awhile. Ishida then made an arm gesture, moving his right hand towards his shirt pocket. '_What the hell is that in his hand?_' "Let's use this." He said, indicating to the tablet-looking object. "What's that?" Ichigo asked the question that was lingering in my head. "It's an anti-Hollow bait. If you break it and scatter it around, Hollows will gather." Ishida explained. "What?!" I stated; anger was starting to be noticed in my voice. "The one who beats the most Hollows in 24 hours is the winner. How about it? Simple rules, right?"

"Screw you! You want to put the townspeople in danger just for our match?! Who the hell do you think you are?!" Ichigo yelled. "Have you gone insane, Ishida?! Lives are in stake if you break that stupid thing!" I screamed. "Shut up, you pompous bastards." "I'll show you a bastard!" I was about to run towards him, wanting to beat the living hell out of him, but I was pulled back by Ichigo. "Let me at him! Let me at him!" "Calm down Tsukiko." Ichigo held me back, as Ishida ignored my little comment and continued. "You don't have to worry about the other people. I'll destroy every last Hollow that shows up." I began growling at him. '_Overconfident jackass!_' "If you have confidence that you can protect the people from Hollows, then you should be able to accept this challenge." And with that, he broke it.

Bait was now floating in the air. Moving along with the wind as it spread all over Karakura town. "I have a really bad feeling about this Ichigo. And my feelings are normally correct." "Don't worry Tsukiko. It'll be alright." Ichigo tried to comfort me, but it wasn't working as much as I wanted it to. I began to hear cracking sounds all over me. It kept on getting louder and louder. Kon and Luna were looking around, trying to figure out where the first Hollow would appear. I searched as well, preparing myself and Kuro Maho for any attack. I heard Ichigo gasp and look towards where he was looking at. A black hole was opening up, and just then, a Hollow began to come out. In an instant, Ishida shot out an arrow and destroyed the Hollow. "One down" was all that Ishida said.

Ichigo then sprung towards Ishida, grabbed him by the front of his shirt and knocked him down towards the ground. I ran after Ichigo and stood behind him. Boy was Ichigo pissed as hell. "You should see your face, Kurosaki Ichigo." "Undo it!" Ichigo demanded. "Send the Hollows back Ishida!" I screamed. Ishida ignored the pleas and said, "Soon this town will be buried in Hollows lured by the bait. The die has been cast, as it were. Isn't there something else you should be doing instead of attacking me?" I saw Ichigo's grip on Ishida shaking. He then released him and stood up. "If you want to protect as many people as possible from the Hollows, that is."

By now, both boys were standing up and Ishida began to walk past Ichigo and myself, but he stopped when Ichigo spoke. "You bastard..." "Have you forgotten? Hollows have a tendency to prefer attacking humans with high spiritual power." Ishida said. Then suddenly, Ichigo gasped and I know why too. '_Karin...Yuzu._' "Yuzu! Karin! Damn it!" Ichigo then ran off to where his sisters could possibly be at. "Ichigo!" I screamed. "Hey wait, Ichigo!" Kon yelled and ran after him. "So you haven't realized after all. Of the people close to you, your family aren't the only ones with high spiritual power." Ishida said. "Luna, I want you to and roam around to make sure nothing bad happens to anyone. After that, find Kon and stick with him." "Right!" Luna ran off and now I stood face to face with Ishida. "I hope you know what you are doing Ishida because if something goes wrong in the end, I will hunt you down and kill you." I told him and then ran off.

"Don't worry. I'll defeat them all. And you will both see how weak you are, here on the banks of the Rubicon. I hate Shinigamis."

**No Ones POV**, Karakura High School

Tatsuki was hanging against a wall, drinking water to cool off from Kendo practice, when suddenly..."It's true. You're the cutest, Mikarin." "Can I really trust you, Yoshirin?" "Of course. After all..." "What? But here, someone might see us." "Jesus...It's too freakin' early for petting!" Tatsuki said annoyed about the ghost couple that was walking past her and that was now currently in front of her. "Damn ghosts..." "Don't worry, no one's watching. Miakrin!" "Yoshirin!" Tatsuki just looked down as the ghosts kissed. "Hey Arisawa! Break's over! Arisawa!" Someone yelled towards Tatsuki. "Got it!" She yelled back. She began to walk back when another voice had stopped her. "Tatsuki-chan." Tatsuki turned around and there stood Orihime. "Orihime?" "Got a...minute?" Orihime asked.

'_That's right, the day I went to hang out at Orihime's place...I have almost no memories from that day. Just, that it was extremely painful and...that I thought I saw someone resembling Kuchiki-san. At first, I thought it had been a dream, but...the next day when I told Orihime about it, she'd had exactly the same dream, and ever since that day, I...have started to see strange things._' Tatsuki thought to herself.

"Tatsuki-chan." As Orihime barely said that, a ghost was now in front of Tatsuki, annoying the hell out of her. "Hey, Tatsuki-chan." Orihime tried getting her attention, but the ghost said to Tatsuki, "Hi there." By now, the ghost was being annoying and stick down his eye lid and turned around to show his butt to Tatsuki asking if she liked his butt. Tatsuki got pissed, began to swat towards the ghost and screamed, "Damn it, quit bugging me!" "Tatsuki-chan?!" Orihime was now frightened. "Oh, sorry. What was it?" "Well you know, it's not a big deal, but..." A large crash was now heard. Students that were still there began to wonder what the noise was. Someone yelled out, "A first floor window just shattered!" Then someone asked if someone had gotten hurt. "I wonder what happened. Let's go see, Orihime." Tatsuki said. "Y-Yeah." The two girls began to run towards where the broken windows were at. But suddenly, Orihime stopped. She looked towards the sky and heard a cracking sound.

Karakura Park

Kids were screaming as they waited for Kurosaki Karin to kick the soccer ball. Karin ran towards the ball and was about to kick it when she suddenly stopped. "Hey Kurosaki, hurry up and kick it!" One kid yelled as he was waiting eagerly for the ball. "What the heck?" Another said. Karin just remained quiet and looked at the sky as well.

**Ichigo's POV**

I ran towards Karin's and Yuzu's school, hoping to find them there. It was empty outside and then there was a scream. A Hollow scream. Above the sky, a small black hole materialized and out came a Hollow. It flew towards me and once it was near, I sliced it straight through the middle of his face with my Zanpakutou. "Third one." I stood up straight and looked at the clock. "It's that late? She must've gone to play somewhere. Where...Damn it."

**Ishida's POV**

Arrow after arrow, I kept on shooting at those damn Hollows. "Seven. Eight. Nine." I shot two more arrows that headed directly towards their targets. "Ten. Eleven." I looked towards the sky and saw what appeared to be a large black rip in the sky.

**Tsukiko's POV**

"Four!" I yelled as I sliced through another Hollow. I was roaming around town, trying not to cause any destruction while I was there. I saw a Hollow flying past towards some building. I jumped to reach the Hollow and once I managed to come face to face, I stabbed it and the Hollow screamed as it disintegrated. "Five." '_Ichigo, you better save your sisters somehow or I am going to kill you. And you better take care of yourself or I'll kill you, bring you back from the dead, just to kill you again. I am so glad that Hitomi had to leave Karakura town today with her family. I would have been extremely worried._' I kept on running, attacking any Hollow that was in my way. "Six!"

**No One's POV**, Urahara Shoten

"What's wrong, Urahara?" Rukia asked. Suddenly, her cell phone went off. "Damn, a Hollow? At a time like this...Sorry, Urahara. We'll continue later." Suddenly, the ringing stopped, indicating that the Hollow was purified and sent to Soul Society. "The signal already disappeared..." Urahara sat there, looking intently knowing what was going on. "Ah. That Ichigo and Tsukiko. Most impressive." Again, another ringing and then it left. "It disappeared again...What's going on? Don't tell me it really is broke." Rukia said as she examined her phone to check that it wasn't damaged in any shape or form. It rang again. "Again? I-It's practically i-impossible for Hollows to appear at this rate!" Panic now appeared on Rukia's face as she saw on her phone that there were various amounts or Hollows appearing. Rukia then heard a Hollow scream and she ran out of the Shoten. Up in the sky, a crack appeared. "What is... this wildly chaotic spirit pulse? Just what...is about to happen?"

With Ichigo

Ichigo was still running, searching for his sisters when three Hollows appeared before him. All the Hollows were the exact same height as one another, and they were tall! The first one that went to attack had a pig like mask and attack Ichigo. Luckily for Ichigo, he had pulled out his Zanpakutou just in time to block the onslaught. As he pushed back to be able to attack, he managed to cut of the pig-headed Hollow. "Come one!" Ichigo screamed as he ran and sliced the Hollow in half. He kept on running and attacked the next Hollow. Ichigo sliced upwards and jumped on top of the Hollows head to attack the last Hollow. Ichigo struck his blade right on top of the Hollows mask and he jumped back down. He placed his Zanpakutou back in it's sheathe and ran off again. '_Where is she?_'

With Ishida

Ishida was still in the same spot as he stood, looking towards the sky. Another Hollows scream was heard and Ishida prepared his bow and shot an arrow. There goes another Hollow.

Somewhere in Karakura streets

Chad was looking at the sky, knowing that there was sometime wrong. "Hurry up, Chad! If we're late, lunchtime will be over! I'll make you pay the difference!" Chad's blonde friend said. This surely caught Chad's attention, not wanting to pay more than he has to already. "That's a problem." "That's right. It is a problem. If you got it, then come on already!" Chad began to catch up with them, when he heard a rumbling noise. He looked towards the sky and thought to himself, '_I've got a bad feeling. This feeling...is familiar..._' Suddenly, Chad got kicked right on his head, thanks to his blonde friend. The blonde feel backwards as Chas rubbed his head. "Get a move on, damn it! I have to string meals together with just minimum wage! My life's on the line here! I'm not a carefree student like you who gets to eat just by being alive!" The blonde complained. "Sorry." Chad said. "'I risk my life for a bowl of food'! Okay, repeat!" "I-I risk my life for a bowl of food." Chad repeated. "If you got it, let's go. Don't buy meals unless it's a bargain. Consider expiration dates a suggestion. Okay, r-"

Then, there was a crash and it was right behind Chad. Both of Chad's friends fell towards the ground. "What happened? Was it a gas explosion?" The one with the blue cap questioned. Dust began to settle when Chad saw the large hole in the ground. '_What? Just that area looks..._' "Hey, Chad. You okay?" The blonde asked looking scared and a bit worried. "Anyway, let's get outta here." Blue cap said. Chad just pushed the two guys to the sides and jumped himself towards his left. "Shigeo! Harutoki! Run aw-" And that's when the Hollow looked right at Chad, and Chad noticed this. He dodged a punch that was thrown at him. Glass broke from the punch that the Hollow had given the windows from trying to hit Chad. '_It's after me? I see. In that case..._' And with that, Chad ran. "Chad, where are you going?"

'_I don't know what that big thing is, but if it's after me, the deal is simple. I'll just run...to somewhere with no one to get caught in the fray._'

Karakura Park

"Run!" A kid yelled, but got hit right in the face with the soccer ball. His nose had begun to bleed and he fell to the ground. "Sorry." Karin said, since she was the one who had kicked the ball. "Kurosaki!" The kid with the afro said. "What's with you today? Spacing out and kicking randomly..." asked the one who wore glasses. "You wanna play or what?!" The one with blonde and black hair asked in an annoyed tone. Karin gave all the boys a look and they back away in fear. "W-W-What? You wanna fight?" Afro kid stuttered out. "Fine, bring it on. Today, we'll finally..." The blonde/black haired boy said. "Sorry, I'm gonna call it a day." Karin told the boys and then walked away. The boys at first were confused but then the afro kid said, "H-Hey, wait! Kurosaki!" As Karin walked away she thought, '_Today's a lost cause. That weird air's been distracting me so I can't concentrate on soccer. I'm just gonna take an early bath and go to bed._'

Karin stopped and looked in front of her. There stood Chad, breathing heavily from all the running that he had done. "Hey, you're Ichi's friend...the parakeet dude." Chad then looked up and said, "Ichigo's sister..." "What's a grown up like you doing here by hims-" Chad grabbed her before she was able to finish her question and jumped away to dodge the Hollow. Karin looked over Chad's shoulder once she was on the ground and saw it. "W-What is that..." Dust rose from everywhere and there in front of both Chad and Karin stood the Hollow. '_It's stopped moving. Is it checking us out? Or maybe...Damn, if I could just see it a little more clearly._' "It's back." Karin muttered. Chad looked at her in shock. "What is it? What the heck is that?" "You...can see that thing?" Chad asked her. "Can I see it? What're you talking about? I see it too clearly." Karin was now frightened. "You..." "Old dude, behind you!" Karin screamed to warn Chad, who was about to get hit by the Hollow. Chad ran towards Karin, grabbed her, and jumped once again. He slid in the ground to try to stop and once he did, he looked back to where the Hollow was.

"It's gone? Where did it go?" Chad questioned. "Where're you looking, old dude?! The right, run away!" Karin was pointing towards the right and moving Chad's head towards the same direction. Another punch and like before, Chad dodged it with ease. He ran as Karin asked him as she was on his back, "Hey, don't tell me you can't see that thing?" "I can see it a little." Was Chad's response. "In other words, you almost can't see it al all." She rephrased his previous statement. "No other choice. Hold on to me. I'll see it for you." She told him. "Wha? U-Unacceptable!" Chad protested. "It is acceptable. Let me do it. This isn't my first time seeing a monster like that." She argued back. Then she said, "I've been wondering...for a long time...how those things are related to Ichi!" "Ichigo?" Chad asked. "Left side, dodge!" Karin commanded. Chad did what she had told him to do. By now, Chad was able to see the Hollows arm. And with that ability, he punched it.

The Hollow screamed in pain. It tried to grab them, but Karin screamed "RIGHT!" However, Chad didn't have enough time to dodge. He covered Karin and took the hit, being sent flying towards the left. They were both on the ground and blood was making its way down Chad's face. "Dude, are you okay?" She asked worried. "Dude!" Karin got off of Chad's hold and tried to wake him up. "Dude!" "Kurosaki!" She heard one of her friends yell. She turned around and all four boys ran up to her. "What happened?" The one in the red shirt asked. "Who's that blood-soaked old dude?" Afro kid asked. "Did you fight with him? You beat him?" Glasses boy wondered. "You dummies! Keep away! Go away!" Karin screamed at them. "What's with the attitude!?" Yelled the red shirt kid. "We were worried about you." The afro boy told her. "You're always like that!" The boy with blonde and black hair told her. Behind the boys, the Hollow appeared and Karin noticed. "Kurosaki's just like the other girls after all." One of them said. "Fickle and mean."

Karin jumped towards the boys and pushed the one with the red shirt down. By that time, Chad was gaining conscious and then he heard a voice in his head saying, "Did you hit someone again, Yasutora? What's the point of hitting? Hurting those how hurt you, and what is left? Yatsutora, you're strong. You're big. You're beautiful. You were born with just about all the things people ask the gods. The things that aren't, can be suppressed. I don't know about the rest, but that's how this world's set up. But Yatsutora, you be gentle. The reason that big, strong fist of yours exists...know that first." '_I know abuelo (grandfather), that the reason my fist is big is not to hurt, that the reason my body is big is to protect._'

By now, Chad stood up and was able to see the Hollow. All the boys ran off. '_I know it all. I know all of it. So...So, just a little..._' By now the Hollow was coming towards Chad and about to attack, when Chad got his right fist ready to attack to protect. '_...give me strength._' Chad screamed and then gave a mighty punch. A bright light appeared where both had attacked one another. The Hollow screamed and fell back. Well, thrown back is a better term. Karin had a shocked look on her face when she saw how far the Hollow was sent flying back. Dust began to disappear and there stood Chad. His right arm was now covered with a black, scarlet, and white colored armor.

"What is with that arm?" Karin questioned, never having seen something like it. The Hollow had gotten back up and was now missing its left arm. It screamed in anger and Chad got ready to fight once again. Chad ran towards the Hollow as Karin screamed to him. "Dude!!" The Hollow, with his right arm, was launching an attack. Chad did an uppercut with his right arm and hit the Hollow straight on. A large flash of bright light appeared and in the end, the Hollow disintegrated and was finally gone. "Old dude, is your arm...alright?" Karin asked as she ran and then stopped. Chad turned around and gave her a thumb up. The look on Karin's face was priceless. '_Oh, my God! How dorky! Couldn't he use something else..._' As Chad began to put his arm down, he too fell with it towards the ground. "DUDE!" Karin screamed.

'_I don't understand..._' Chad thought, '..._the armor that suddenly appeared on my right arm...the unbelievable thing that came out of it...the monster I was suddenly able to see clearly...I don't understand...any of it. Except..._'

"Are you hurt, Ichigo's sister?" Chad asked Karin as she now stood next to him. "Stupid ass, you're the only one who's hurt." Karin smiled as tears were now glistening in her eyes. "Oh. That's good." Chad responded. A foot suddenly hit Chad's head with such a force. "NO, it ain't good!" Karin screamed at him. Chad held his head feeling some of the pain from the kick. "What's so good that only you got hurt?! If anyone at all gets hurt, that's already NOT good! That kind of thinking is just a show-off's logic! On that point, you're just like Ichi! I can't take it! You just wait! I'm gonna call my dad and have him treat you! Don't move from there, old dude!" Karin screamed and then ran off to call her father. '_Ichigo's sister, eh? She's just like Ichigo...in the way she kicks._'

Karakura High School

Orihime was looking at the sky they cleaned up the broken pieces of glass. Chizuru was helping Tatsuki by sweeping the fragments into a dust pan. Orihime was looking at one specific direction, feeling as if something was there, in which...there was.


	13. Orihime Shines!

Chapter 13: Orihime Shines!

**No One's POV**

Ichigo was running, still searching for his sisters. "Where the hell is she playing?!" "Ichigo!" A voice yelled. Running towards him was Kon. "Kon, where the hell've you been?!" "What're you talkin' about? You're the one who took off runnin' all of a sudden. You even left Tsukiko behind." Ichigo then gripped Kon's shirt, well more like his own shirt and said, "Oh, yeah. You know where Yuzu and Karin are? And how Tsukiko is doing?" "Don't worry, they're back home. I just came form there. Tsukiko is doing fine, from when I last saw her." Ichigo then let Kon go and muttered, "Oh."

"What about you? Where've you been searching this whole time?" Kon asked. Ichigo just ignored his question and said in a serious tone, "Now, to find Ishida." Ichigo gripped Kon's shoulders this time and told him, "Take care of my sisters!" And with that, he ran off. As he ran off, he screamed, "Ishida!", and he didn't realize that he pushed Kon, who had fallen with his legs up in the sky. "Damn it." Kon muttered as he stood up, now sporting a rather large bump in the head.

**Tsukiko's POV**

I kept on running. I had gone from being in the city and now I back by the park. I looked around and say something. There lying on the ground was Chad. He had passed out. But what stood out to me was his giant armored arm. "Holy cow, I wonder how that happened. But from what I am sensing, he defeated a Hollow." I bent down towards Chad and said to him, even though he was passed out, "Hope you get better Chad. I would help you out, but I am not much of an expert with healing and all. But I have the feeling that someone is coming to help ya." I got up and ran again.

"Tsukiko!" I stopped and turned around. Luna was running towards me. No injury on her whatsoever. I grabbed her shoulder and shook her as I asked, "Luna. How has everything been? No problem? Have you seen Ichigo? What about Karin and Yuzu?" "Whoa, whoa! Everything is fine, there are no problems, I haven't seen Ichigo, and from what I saw Karin and Yuzu are safe back in their own home." I let her go and noticed that her eyes, you know what I mean, had small swirls in them. "Thank god. Alright I think you should go and look for Kon now or something." She nodded and said, "Alright I will. Maybe you should find Ichigo too." "I will. See you in a while." I said to her and ran off.

**No One's POV**, Karakura High School

"Jeez...If I knew I'd have to help clean up, I wouldn't have come to see. It's like, 'Instead of lecturing us, make the ones who did it clean up!'" Chizuru complained as she swept up the glass on the floor. "It's 'cause you made such a bug fuss." Tatsuki told her and she herself was getting annoyed by Chizuru. "So did you!" Chizuru countered back. "What?!" Tatsuki was getting more pissed by the second. "What?" Chizuru asked. "But you know, there was something weird about all of those guys." Tatsuki said. "Hm? What's 'Hime doing?" Chizuru wondered as she stood up and looked towards Orihime.

Orihime stood still. In her hands she held a dust pan and a broom. She was still looking at the same spot in the sky. "'Hime! With your cute face, if you stare off into space...I'm gonna kiss you!" Chizuru said with hearts surrounding her as she puckered her lips, wanting to kiss Orihime. "What're you running your mouth about all of a sudden?!" Tatsuki said pissed off as she had an anger mark on her head and her fist balled up, ready to punch the girl if necessary. "What?!" Chizuru said. "What?!" Tatsuki also said. Then out of no where, Orihime finally spoke and said to both girls, "There's a...um...TV show that I want to watch. So let's quit cleaning and go home, 'kay?" Both Tatsuki and Chizuru just looked at her. "Huh?" "Hurry, hurry." Orihime was now pushing both girls to make them walk faster. "You come too, Tatsuki-chan." Orihime said. "W-Wait, Orihime!" "Come on, 'kay? Please, hurry. Hurry!" She told them.

'_The first thing I thought was...I wish I hadn't noticed. The next thing I thought was...I have to get away from here. And the only thing I know is...that thing is dangerous. Every cell in my body was tingling...telling me..."You have to run...and to keep others from panicking...keep calm and act as if nothing was happening."'_ Orihime thought in her head.

"Come on! Both of you, hurry, hurry!" Orihime suddenly stopped her pushing and looked behind her. '_It disappeared...'_ "Sorry, Orihime." That snapped her out of her little trance. "I have to change. Sorry, you two go ahead without me." Tatsuki had told them and then ran off. "Tatsuki-chan, wait!" Orihime screamed. "I'll catch up with you soon!" Tatsuki yelled back at them. '_That's not it! It disappeared!_' Orihime panicked. "Tatsuki-chan, uh...!" And suddenly, she felt it. She felt the presence behind her. Orihime gulped. She knew that there was going to be trouble and now she was extremely worried. She turned around and there she saw it. Tentacles were swaying in the air, eyes glowed yellow. And then it spoke to her.

"You can see me, can't you?" Orihime gasped and turned around completely to see the Hollow. The Hollow narrowed its eyes and there it was to start.

**Ichigo's POV**

Another Hollow stood before me. I quickly slashed it and faced the other two. "Shit! I destroyed another Hollow as another appeared before me. "Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" I purified the last Hollow. "ISHIDA!" I yelled.

**Ishida's POV**

I released another arrow which killed the Hollow. "Twenty." I pulled back my left arm, ready to release another arrow. '_Sensei, for your sake as well...' "_I will win!" And with that, I released my arrow.

**No One's POV**, Karakura High School

Orihime was now shocked. "What's wrong, 'Hime?" Chizuru asked her. She looked up at the sky and asked, "Is there something above us?" "Run away!" Orihime told her. "What?" "Run away, Chizuru-chan! Hurry!" She screamed at her. "I won't let her get away." The Hollow said. As soon as the Hollow said that, spikes grew out of its head and shot them out. All the windows around them broke. More spikes kept being shot out and Orihime screamed. "What? The windows again? 'Hime, are you oka-" But Chizuru couldn't finish her sentence. She screamed as she was hit on the left shoulder. "Chizuru-chan!" Orihime screamed worried. She ran towards the fallen girl. "Chizuru-chan!" On Chizuru's shoulder, there was a green stain, but it kept on getting larger and darker.

"What should I do...Chizuru-chan!" Then Chizuru began to get up. "Owwww! What's wrong?" Chizuru asked as she lightly touched Orihime's face. "Why are you crying? You're so cute." Chizuru told Orihime and then stood up, while rubbing her left shoulder. "Well, I have no idea what just happened...but for now, I feel perfectly fine. Okay?" Orihime stood afterwards and said, "But..." "It's okay. Of course...You do look really cute when you're crying...but your face is much prettier when you smile."

all of a sudden, Chizuru's left arm grasped Orihime's arm and began to grip it. "Huh? Ch-Chizuru-chan..." "Why...My hand...it moved on its own! No! Why?! Why is this happening?!" Chizuru questioned as she began to worry.

Meanwhile with Rukia

Rukia looked at her phone as it kept on beeping. So many Hollows were appearing on the tiny screen. "What in the world is happening?!" She asked as she kept on running, trying to find an answer.

Back at Karakura High School

Chizuru's grip just kept on hurting Orhime. "What is this?!" She asked. "What did you do to Chizuru-chan?!" Orihime asked as she turned towards the Hollow. "'Hime?" "I just used a bit of my power." The Hollow told her. "Power?" "I'm not fond of fighting...so I control my opponents' bodies with these seeds from my forehead...making humans fight amongst themselves." The Hollow laughed after the explanation. "How could you..." "Okay, everyone, let's begin." "What?!" Behind Orihime, her fellow students walked towards her. But there was something different from them. They were all like zombies. They were all under the control of the Hollow. "What's wrong? What? What's going on?" They all had approached Orhime and were ready to attack her. When suddenly, "What're you jerks doing?!"

Tatsuki screamed as she jumped and began to fight off the zombie-like students. Kick after kneeing after punch, Tatsuki fought the students. "Tatsuki-chan!" "I'm sorry, Orihime. I didn't notice before...that something like that was here." Tatsuki said to her. "So you can see that thing, too?" Orihime asked her. "I can't see it. But I can at least tell where it is. Where the thing that made you cry is, that is." Tatsuki explained. She then faced towards the Hollow and screamed towards it. "Hey, you big shit, over there! You chose the wrong person to pick a fight with! The rule is: Anyone who makes Orihime cry, always gets their ass whipped by me or Tsukiko." "Oh?" The Hollow said.

The controlled students began to surround Tatsuki. "Outta my way!" She smacked some guy in the head. "Next!" She kicked another in the stomach and said, "Next!" She punched, "Next!" She kneed, "Next!" She had finished the last blow and said, "Hmph, not one worthy fighter in the lot." When a hand gripped her right shoulder. Tatsuki turned around and said, "Get a clu-" until she stopped. Chizuru said to her, "Run, Tatsuki..." "Chizuru!" "I think something's wrong with me." The grip on Tastuki's shoulder kept getting harder and harder. Tatsuki yelled in pain" "Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime screamed, but was quieted when another student placed his hand on her mouth.

The Hollow then shot another seed from its forehead. It headed straight for Tatsuki and it hit her on her left shoulder. Tatsuki was sent backwards, landing on the floor below her. "How do you feel?" the Hollow asked and then continued, "The seed I just shot into you will soon grow roots in your body and control it." The Hollow moved and hovered near Tatsuki. "In other words, that means your body will do what I want. Okay. Now, cry." It commanded. Tatsuki moved a bit and said, "Shut up!" "Huh?" Tatsuki moved to stand up and screamed, "I said, shut up! Let Orihime go!" "Excuse me? Do you understand your situation? You've lost almost all control of your body. Come on, how about it?" The Hollow moved one of its tentacles and placed it next to Tatsuki's face. "Come on, come on-" The Hollow screamed as Tatsuki bit the tentacle. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, DAMN IT?! Let go!" The Hollow raised another tentacle and hit Tatsuki. "I said let go!! Let go this instant! I don't need to control you! Die!!" The Hollow shot out more seeds and they all hit Tatsuki.

Orihime finally was able to escape the grip of her captive, ran and screamed, "Tatsuki-chan!" Tatsuki released the tentacle in her mouth and fell. '_O-Orihime...Don-Don't cry...Ori..._'Then a foot hit Orihime's stomach. As Orihime fell Tatsuki stood up. Tatsuki was now being controlled by the Hollow. As Orihime looked up towards Tatsuki, she had a flashback of her brother and some of her past.

"_You have beautiful hair, Orihime. It's such a warm and wonderful color._" He said to her. Then she had images when girls would pick on her. "_What the hell's with your hair? It pisses me off!_" "_No!!_" A young Orihime screamed. "_Orihime, why did you cut your hair?_" Sora asked. "_No reason. I just felt like it._" She told him. "_What're you standing around looking dazed for? Come on, let's walk home together._" A younger Tatsuki told her. '_The reason I could grow my hair again was because of Tatsuki-chan. I know I'll never have to cut my hair short again. After all, the length of my hair is a symbol of my reliance on Tatsuki-chan. Thank you for protecting me until now._' Orihime thought as she was raising her hand. '_So...don't cry._' Orihime stood and hugghed her.

"Ori...hime..." Tatsuki struggled to say. "Tatsuki-chan, this time...I'll protect you." Orihime said as tears fell from her grayish eyes.

Orihime's flower pins suddenly glowed and then separated causing a large burst of light to appear. "What?!" the Hollow screamed. A whirlwind surrounded Orihime and because of that, it sent the controlled students flying towards the sides. "Tatsuki-chan said...you chose the wrong person to pick a fight with. But that's not it. You chose the wrong person to hurt." The whirlwind disappeared and Orihime stood tall, confidence was now in her voice as she said, "I won't forgive anyone who hurts Tatsuki-chan!" Little fairy-like creatures flew around Orihime as the Hollow asked, "Wh-What the hell are you? Using some weird power...what is that?" "What?" Orihime asked as something flew past her ear. "What are they?" She wondered.

"You didn't even notice us?!" A male voice asked her. "No, you must have...realized our existence." A female voice then said. "What?" Orihime wondered. "After all, we were always closest to you." The same female voice said. One of the fairy-like creatures landed on Orihime's shoulder. It had moved and Orihime gasped. "Pleased to me you, Orihime-san." Said a blonde fairy with green wings and who was wearing a red outfit. The others flew much closer to Orihime now. "We are the Six Flowers of the Hibiscus Shield. We were born to protect you. We are your power." The same blonde explained. Orihime just stared, but then said, "Aahh, fairies! Flying fairies are talking to me!" "Funny reaction. But we're not fairies." The blonde said. "Huh?" "I told you. We're the power of your soul. We are a part of you. And we can only be seen by you. Although...someone like Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko could probably see us, too." "Kurosaki-kun? Tsukiko-chan? Why?" "After all, we were born because of him and developed properly because of her." "What?"

Suddenly, a male with back hair and a long beige scarf that covered the lower half of his face and clad in black, kicked the blonde and said, "You're taking forever!" The male flew to face Orihime and said, "Hey, woman...you don't need to understand who we are or where we came from." "You're so pompous...even though you're so small." Orihime told him. "Shut up! More importantly, learn how to control us right this minute!" He told Orihime, who asked, "How to control you?" "That's right." Then another male who was bald with elfish ears who was clad in purple said, "Our power is the power to put up a shield and reject things." Then the last male, who was bald as well except for the braid in his hair and wearing a brownish color, then said, "What's required to do...That is in your heart and in your magic words."

After that explanation, Orihime had swirls in her eyes. "M-Magic words?" "Wait!" The male with black hair flew upwards and said, "It's coming." After he said that, the Hollow appeared before them. "What are you so damn confused about?! You, little girl..." The Hollow said as it prepared its seeds to be shot out. "Here we go, Orihime-san! Go on, call our names. I am Hinagiku!" said the bald male. "I'm Baigon!" the male with the single braid said. "I'm Lily!" said the female with pink hair that was styled in three buns and bangs. "Calm down." The blonde told her. "Say the magic words. Repeat...Hinagiku, Baigon, Lily! Hurry!" The Hollow shot out its seeds, sending them towards Orihime. "Hinaguki! Baigon! Lily!" "Sacred Tri-Link Shield! I reject!" The three told Orihime to repeat. "Sacred Tri-Link Shield! I reject!"

The three suddenly formed a triangular shield, protecting Orihime from the Hollow's attack. "What?" The Hollow questioned. The blonde then flew next to Orihime and explained, "Their power is to reject what's outside the shield. They put up a shield between you and the enemy...and stops attacks aimed at you. And..." She then flew towards Tatsuki. Another female with black-blue hair in two pig tails followed. "...our power is to stop what's inside the shield. We can return objects within a limited space to a state before they were destroyed. Go on, call our names. I'm Shun'ou." The blonde said. "I'm Ayame." Orihime then said, "Shun'ou, Ayame..." "Then say the magic words." Shun'ou told her. "Scared Dual Return Shield! I reject." All three screamed at the same time. Shun'ou and Ayame then formed a shield that began to heal Tatsuki. "Tatsuki-chan!"

"Woman, you don't have time to cry!" the male with black hair told her. "It's my turn next." Orihime looked at him as he kept talking, "My power is rejecting both sides of the shield. I put up a shield inside the enemy and reject their physical bonds. In other words, it means I split the enemy into halves. Chant! My name is Tsubaki!" "Tsubaki! Sacred Solitary Cutting Shield! I reject!" Orihime screamed out. Tsubaki then went flying towards the Hollow, going right through it and attacking. "Impossible..." the Hollow said as a crack appeared in the middle of its head. The Hollow then screamed and disappeared.

Orihime began panting. "I did it..." And as soon as she said that, Orihime fell towards the ground. "Orihime-san!" Hinagiku said. "Orihime!" Ayame said. "Orihime-san!" "My, oh my, I guess using all of us right away was too much." Shun'ou said, "But...Orihime-san stuck out really well." The six flew upwards towards the sky and joined back together, forming the flower clips. The clips fell from the sky and landed right next to Orihime.

**Tsukiko's POV**

I ran towards the school since I felt a Hollow there and someone's spiritual energy. As I jumped onto the roof I saw Orihime finishing off a Hollow with some weird fairies. After the Hollow dematerialized, she fell to the ground and passed out. Her fairies then flew upwards and became her flower pins. "Wow that's amazing." I jumped down the roof and as I approached, I saw my godfather. Behind him was Tessai who was carrying Chad on his back. "What brings you here, Urahara?" I asked him. "Oh I was just in the neighborhood with Tessai and your passed out friend, when I suddenly saw this little fiasco." Urahara said as he fanned himself. "Uh huh. So you're gonna tell them aren't you." "I have no idea what you are talking about." I sighed a mushroom sigh. "Fine then. Don't tell me. I have to go and check out for more Hollows. Laters!" I then ran off.

**No One's POV**, Karakura Park

Three figures were running into the park. It was Yuzu, Karin, and Isshin. "Huh? The old dude ain't here." Karin said. "Is this really the place? You're sure?" Yuzu asked her sister. "I said I was sure! He really was knocked out right her-" "Hey Karin!" Isshin interrupted his daughter. "You liar!" "It's not a lie! That old dude really was hurt and..." She screamed at him. Suddenly Isshin shook his finger and then said, "Don't say anything else, Karin. Dad knows. I have been so busy with work lately that I could not play with you at all. I did not know you wanted time with me so badly that you would lie." Then Isshin ripped open his shirt and yelled out, "Come, Karin, leap joyously to your father's bosom!"

A punch landed right in his face and he fell to the ground. "Shut up, dumbass." Karin said irritated. "In any case, let's go back to the house. I've been getting a bad feeling about this." Yuzu said. Isshin then began rolling around the ground, complaining about the punch. "It huuuuurts!" "Ah, it's no use." Karin said.

Up on an electric pole, Kon was looking at the Kurosaki's. "Everything's fine over here." "Kon!" He looked towards his right and saw Luna running towards him. "Ah Luna. How's everything?" "Fine. So where we off to?" "Well we gotta keep scouting and all. Let's go." "Alright..." With that, they both leapt away.

Urahara Shoten

"Huh? Sado-kun?" Orihime woke up from where she was laying. "Oh, you're awake. Morning." Chad told her. "M-Morning. Uh, where are we?" Orihime asked him. "Beats me." Chad said. "So you're finally awake." A voice said to them. The two teens turned around and saw Urahara. "Who is he?" Orihime asked Chad. "I don't know. But somehow, it seems we were saved by him." "That is correct." Urahara said, "Well now, where shall I begin..."

With Ichigo

Ichigo was breathing heavily as he purified another Hollow. "Shit! Damn you, Ishida! I'm gonna make you cry no matter what!" He said.

With Ishida

Ishida shot another Hollow. By now his fingers on his left hand began to bleed. "I'm starting to lose my ability to kill them with a single attack." _But...What's going on? There's too many for them all to have been drawn by that bait. It's almost like some other huge power is attracting them. But that stuff is irrelevant._' "Sensei, I will avenge you for sure." Ishida then prepared another attack.

With Rukia

"Way of Destruction, no. 4! Byakurai!" Rukia yelled her Kido attack to a Hollow she encountered. The attack headed towards the Hollow, but the Hollow blocked it and sent it back towards Rukia, who managed to dodge it. "Damn!" '_This Hollow is an utter weakling! I cannot even defeat one that's this weak...This means my power hasn't recovered in the slightest?!_' Then Rukia heard someone running towards her. She turned around and saw two figures. The figures jumped in the air and kicked the Hollow right in the face. '_Ichigo? Tsukiko?_' The supposed Ichigo turned around, but something was off. He smiled.

He jumped towards Rukia, hearts flying around him as he landed on Rukia's chest. "I missed you, Nee-san!" "Damn it, you're Kon." Rukia said. "Then that means Tsukiko is really Luna." "Right!" Luna said, "Alright Kon, get off of Rukia-chan." Rukia raised her foot and kept him away from her. "Even being kicked like this is delightful." Kon said. "This isn't the time to be talking like an idiot!" Rukia said pissed. "That's what I try to tell him sometimes." Luna said. "Although, the fact that you're in Ichigo's body and Luna is in Tsukiko's body means...he and Tsukiko changed to Shinigamis." Rukia stated. "Actually, Nee-san, behind you, behin-" "Huh?" Rukai turned around and there, she saw him. Ishida Uryuu.

"Good. Looks like you three are alright." Ishida said, "Kuchiki Rukia, this is the first time we've talked one on one." Both Kon and Luna anime fell and thought, '_We weren't even acknowledged._' As Rukia got up, she kicked Kon in the face. "I see. So this is your doing?" She asked. "Without a doubt. This is a fight between the Shinigamis and I." "What?" "However, I don't intend to let a single person in this town die. Even if Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko run out of strength...I will stake my life to protect the people of this town. While he and she...While the Shinigamis watch...I will protect everything from the Hollows. If I cannot...then there is no meaning in this fight. " Ishida said to her. "What in the..." Suddenly, the same Hollow that Rukia fought came back. Ishida summoned his bow and prepared to attack.

Urahara Shoten

"Hold on a second there..." Chad said. "Yeah. Shinigamis and Hollows...you can't suddenly tell us that and expect..." Orihime said. "Then you deny the fact that both of you were recently attacked?" Urahara asked them both. "But that's..." Orihime began. "Even as we speak, Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko are fighting Hollows as Shinigamis. And you two were affected by the extraordinary spirit power that oozes from them. That's how it is. Still though, whether or not to open the door that has appeared before you is up to each of you." Urahara said. Then from behind him, the door slid open. "Manager..." Tessai said, now kneeled before him. "...the 'sky crests' have begun converging." "Preparations?" Urahara asked. "Complete." Tessai told him. "The let's go." Urahara turned around and said to the two teens, "Will you come along? I will show you...what's beyond the door." And with that he began to walk away.

**Tsukiko's POV**

I ran towards Rukia spirit energy. "Hopefully everyone is there." "Tsukiko!" A voice yelled her name. Next to her now was Ichigo, running with her. "Nice to see you alive, Ichigo." "Same here Tsukiko." "So how much did you end up killing?" I asked him. "Uhhh I think 23. You?" "I think it was about 23 or 24. But I'm siding with 24." I smirked at his face. "No way! There is no way that you beat me." "Ichigo, don't hate." I laughed and then noticed something. "Look there they are. And a Hollow too. I betcha I can get it before you can." "Alright it's a deal. Whoever gets it the other person owes them dinner." "You're on!" We ran towards the Hollow and jumped. I was about to stab it, when Ichigo's long Zanpakutou got to it before I was able to. "No fair. Your Zanpakutou is longer." "Oh well. You owe me dinner." We jumped over everyone that was there and landed behind Ishida.

"I've found you...Ishida!" Ichigo smirked. "Don't you mean 'we'?" I told him. "Right. We've found you!" Ichigo corrected himself. "Kurosaki...Takeshi..." Ishida said. "Ichigo? Tsukiko?" Rukia said. We both just smirked.


	14. The Menos Grande

First of all, I would like to thank DevilWearsJeans for giving me advice. I gladly appreciate them and hopefully I have been able to fix them. I am now currently thinking about a new title for this fic so if any of you guys have any ideas let me know.

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Chapter 14: The Menos Grande

It was quiet as Ichigo stared at Ishida. Tension was filling in the air because of the two. Tsukiko stood besides Ichigo, waiting for one of either male to say something. Or in her case, do something.

"I finally found you, Ishida!" Ichigo said as he smirked, "I won't be satisfied until I beat you down."

'Ichigo, you're an idiot.' Tsukiko thought in her head as she sweat dropped. Once again, he had forgotten that the female was right besides him.

The Quincy, Ishida, stared at Ichigo but then created his bow, pulling an arrow back ready to shoot. As soon as Ishida was prepared to release his arrow, the Hollow materialized behind Ichigo and a little further than Tsukiko. Ichigo who realized Ishida's movement, turned to face the Hollow. Once Ishida released his arrow, it flew straight towards where Ichigo was. The arrow had gotten close to him, he instantly turned around and destroyed the arrow. As Ichigo destroyed the arrow, Tsukiko stabbed the Hollow, purifying it and sending the soul to the Soul Society.

"That's right," Ichigo began, "You _do_ understand. This fight is between you, me, and Tsukiko. So...quit talking about who took down more Hollows!"

"You shouldn't be selfish saying that you can do it, that you can destroy all of them because guess what, it's impossible to do that! Now let's settle this between the three of us!" Tsukiko yelled at him. She was fuming with anger since she was being told that she couldn't protect those she cared for and the civilians. That was the main reason why she became a Shinigami.

"Say something, Ishida!" Ichigo roared.

"Hey, Ichigo!" said Kon, who caught Ichigo's attention.

Ichigo just turned to face Kon and yelled to the mod soul, "What?! I'm bus-"

"They sky..." was all that Kon had to say to catch Ichigo's attention.

All 6 turned and faced the sky. Hollows were heading towards a single direction and that was at the crack in the sky. "What is that?" Tsukiko asked, now knowing that this was going to be a huge problem.

"The Hollows..." Ishida started, "are gathering."

Ishida had begun to run towards the stairs to find where the center was. "Wait!" Tsukiko yelled to Ishida, trying to stop him from doing something stupid. But with no avail, he kept on running. That is, until Ichigo spoke.

"You saw how many there are."

This had certainly stopped Ishida. He turned to face the others. He had a look that said that he didn't care. "Are you scared, Kurosaki? Takeshi? If you're scared, then observe from there. Victory will be mine!" Ishida released an arrow that had split into four, killing Hollows that were near the area.

"Down here, Hollows!" screamed the Quincy, trying capture the attention of the Hollows. "The last Quincy, Ishida Uryuu will stand and face you!"

"The last Quincy?" Ichigo and Tsukiko muttered as they watched Ishida face Hollows.

"They went extinct two hundred years ago...the Quincys." Rukia stated the facts. This had caused Ichigo and Tsukiko to face her. A look of confusion was present. "Actually, to be exact..." she continued, "they were exterminated by the Shinigamis."

"Even for Shinigamis, it was a bitterly hard decision." The words of Urahara flowed through Rukia's head. "The Shinigamis had to exterminate the Quincys...in order to prevent the collapse of this world."

"In Soul Society, there's a lay habitat of referring to Shinigamis as 'Balancers', or in other words, regulators." Rukia began her explanation to those around her.

"Regulators?" Ichigo questioned.

Rukia continued her explanation, "The two flows filling Soul Society and the human world are constantly exchanging. And the two worlds have a soul balance. Maintaining that is the work of us Shinigamis. But..."she paused, "then the Quincys appeared. The Quincys completely destroy Hollows. In other words, that means the souls sent to the human world don't come back to Soul Society. If left alone, the balance of the two worlds will crumble. It'd be the end of the world."

After Rukia finished part of her explanation, Ichigo and Tsukiko looked at one another and ran off. The two teens ran as fast as possible to find Ishida. With the new information still fresh in their heads, they ran to try to stop him. The two were breathing hard now, panting with every step.

"Talks between the Shinigamis and the Quincys were held innumerable times. The Quincys stubbornly refused to address the complaints. And so, the decision to annihilate the Quincys was handed down. Do _you_ consider that to be the Shinigamis' arrogance?"

A blue arrow went straight through a Hollows forehead. In an area that seemed to look like a park, Ishida stood there fighting off the Hollows. There were about twenty or more Hollows surrounding him.

"Damn," he said, "their numbers aren't diminishing." He thought about his former master and then didn't care about the odds. "Sensei..."

"Ishida!" Two voices yelled together. Ishida's attention was taken away from the Hollows now.

The Hollows turned back to look at the voices as well. It was there that they noticed, their fellow Hollows were being slaughtered, one after another. Ishida's eyebrow twitched as a sign of annoyance.

'How reckless...' he thought.

"Booyah!" Ichigo and Tsukiko yelled as they stood above the defeated Hollows as if they were warriors who had won a war. The only difference about their poses was that Ichigo had his Zanpakuotu out while Tsukiko held her fists high in the air. Both were panting as they stood tall.

"We heard your reason for fighting!" yelled a somewhat worn out Ichigo.

"Yeah! Whether the Shinigamis are right, or the Quincys are right..." Tsukiko began, "...well, I dunno about all that and I don't mean to say that we're one way or another. But...there is one thing we know..."

"...Your way is-" Sadly, Ichigo was interrupted by Ishida.

"That's ancient history."

"Huh?" Tsukiko and Ichigo questioned.

Ishida fixed his glasses as he clarified to them what he meant. "I have no interest in the extermination two hundred years ago. I'd only heard about that from my Sensei's stories. In fact, as far as that extermination story goes...I even felt the Shinigamis' side was more just...until Sensei died right before my eyes."

The two Shinigamis watched Ishida as he stood there, not muttering a word. However in Ishida's head, he heard the words of his Sensei as if it was just yesterday.

"Rather...I think the Quincys were wrong for turning a deaf ear to the Shinigamis' words." His Sensei had told him.

"Why?" A young Ishida questioned the elder man. "It was the _Quincys_ who were annihilated."

"That's right." The elder man told the young boy. "A lot of people died. Once a person is dead...thinking about who was right and who was wrong is meaningless. What we must think about is how we can make sure that situation never happens again. Only that. Be it human or Shinigami...seeing a sad face is unbearable to me."

Ishida readied another arrow as he informed the two Shinigamis, "He was a kind person who didn't hate or despise anyone." Ishida released his arrow and destroyed another Hollow. "As the last Quincy, Sensei was under the strict observation of the Shinigamis.

And still, he kept appealing to the Shinigamis...to combine our strength and fight together.

"But the answer was always the same. _Don't interfere with our work_." Another arrow was sent to another Hollow. "Then...on that day, five huge Hollows appeared. It was obvious he couldn't fight them without the help from Shinigamis. When the Shinigamis showed up, it was _two whole hours_ after Sensei had begun fighting."

Ishida turned to face Ichigo and Tsukiko as he continued, "If they had recognized his power, his ideas...they would have come to help sooner." He gripped his bloody hand with anger. "Sensei wouldn't have had to die! Can you understand, Kurosaki Ichigo? Takeshi Tsukiko?"

Hollows continued to move around all three of them. But Ishida ignored the Hollows as he kept on speaking.

"I _must_ prove the power of the Quincys before the eyes of the Shinigamis no matter what!" He turned away from the other two and said, "I know our ideas are totally opposite. If you think I'm mistaken, then stand there and watch. With my own power, I will-"

"WHEN ARE YOU GONNA SHUT UP?!" Ichigo yelled as he kicked Ishida in the head, making Ishida land a face plant.

"You know you can be a little gentler, Ichigo. Although that did look really fun." Tsukiko smirked as she jumped off the pile of fallen Hollows and walked towards the two boys.

Ishida bounced back up and yelled to him, "What are you doing?!"

"It makes no sense!" Ichigo screamed in his face. An anger mark appeared in his forehead. "Basically, your Sensei's hope _wasn't_ to make the Shinigamis recognize the Quincy's power...but to combine our powers and fight together, right?!" Ichigo gripped Ishida's shirt and yelled, "In that case...if you don't do that now, when the hell are you going to?!"

Ichigo lifted Ishida off the ground and stood behind him more towards his left. Tsukiko joined in and stood behind Ishida to his right.

"Screw the whole idea of being _totally opposite_. In a fight against a ton of enemies...being close to one another in a triangular shape gets the job done better." Tsukiko said as she removed Kuro Maho from it's sheathes.

All three of them fought hard. Ichigo sliced a Hollow in the face as Ishida sent an arrow to another. Tsukiko had a running start towards two Hollows and stabbed them right in the center of their faces. Ishida shot at two Hollows who were closing up on him.

"That's it!" Ichigo smirked.

"Don't get the wrong idea. If I didn't shoot, I would've been killed." Ishida told them as he went back to his original place in the triangle.

"Whatever you say, Ishida. That's just fine." Tsukiko grinned.

"Kill or be killed. But alone, it'd be hard. So we've got no choice. That's more than good enough...for a reason to combine our strength." Ichigo said as he watched all of the Hollows surrounding them. "Only...I want to _defeat_ Hollows. _We_ want to defeat Hollows."

"Why?" Ishida asked.

"My mom...was killed by a Hollow." Ichigo told him.

"My parents were killed by a Hollow just one year ago." Tsukiko said.

Ichigo then said for both himself and Tsukiko, "Is that the reason we want to defeat Hollow? If someone had asked one of us...then our answers would have been yes, but...how should I say it...we both don't want to create others who are like me and Tsukiko.

"After my mom was killed...my pop and sisters all suffered a lot. And I know that Tsukiko and her elder brother must have felt the same way...I...we feel like there's no need for any more of that."

Three Hollows ran towards the Ichigo and Tsukiko. With a wave of his blade, Ichigo defeated two of them. Tsukiko struck the third Hollow and sent it back to its rightful place.

"We don't want to see any more of that" Tsukiko mumbled the words loud enough for Ichigo and Ishida to hear. "That is what we _feel_."

Inside of Ishida's mind, he heard the words of his Sensei saying "...seeing a sad face is unbearable to me."

"I know that Ichigo and I can't talk big about protecting everyone in the world or nothing like that...but..." Tsukiko allowed Ichigo to finish her sentence.

"We are not so conservative to say it's good enough to protect only those we can hold in our arms either. We both want to protect a _mountain_ of people! This duel you thought up is the way to put that mountain of people _in the crossfire_. Give us a freakin' break! But...now isn't the time for saying that. We've got no choice but to team up! What do you have to say?"

"Man, oh man." Mumbled Ishida. "I was wondering when _you_ were going to shut up." He said in a louder voice as he readied another arrow. "But I understand completely. If the three of us don't survive this, we won't have each other to beat up."

"That's the spirit!" yelled Tsukiko as she ran to the nearest Hollow.

"Hell yeah!!" Ichigo grinned with excitement as he ran to slice another Hollow.

Tsukiko yelled out, "Mystic Shadow Strike!" A black beam emitted off of Kuro Maho as it struck 5 Hollows. She ran to another Hollow and jumped up in the air. Landing on top of the Hollows head, she stabbed downwards and jumped to face another one.

Ichigo ran to the Hollows that were nearest to him and swung his large Zanpakutou. He struck four Hollows and then moved on. He ran to a tall and lanky Hollow and stabbed the Hollow in the middle of its stomach. Ichigo then pulled his blade upwards and finished his job on that Hollow.

Ishida shot out many arrows in a single release. About ten Hollows were destroyed with that single blow. Ishida turned towards his left and shot more glowing blue arrows to other Hollows.

As Ichigo ran and slashed two Hollows, a voice yelled to him.

"Ichigo! Behind you!" Tsukiko yelled as she ran towards him.

Ichigo turned around and saw a rounded Hollow about to strike him. But then he felt something grab his shoulders. Tsukiko lifted herself off of his shoulders and jumped towards the Hollow. She hacked the Hollow with her sai-shaped Zanpakutou and with that, it dematerialized.

"Thanks." Ichigo smiled towards Tsukiko as a sign of appreciation.

"No problem. I mean this is a form of team work." She told him as she held a thumb up. She then ran off to fight another Hollow.

"If you use me as a form of launch pad, then yeah that's teamwork. But still, that was a smart move." Ichigo muttered as he went to fight another Hollow.

All three teens, kept on fighting off the Hollows. Even though they fought off a countless amount of Hollows, there were still a lot of them left. The three got back in the triangle position and looked around themselves. Ichigo got his Zanpakutou ready to run to another Hollow, but he was stopped when Ishida called out his name and Tsukiko's.

"Kurosaki! Takeshi!"

"What is it, Ishida?" Tsukiko faced him.

"The sky..."

"The sky?" Ichigo questioned.

Ichigo and Tsukiko looked up towards the sky and saw it. The crack in the sky began to get much larger then it first had been. Two hands then came out of the crack.

"What...is _that_?" questioned Tsukiko.

As Rukia was with Kon and Luna, she looked up towards the sky and realized what was coming out of the large crack. Her face now expressed a single emotion: fear. It was something that she feared, for she has never been able to witness in her lifetime.

"That's..."

Luna questioned to herself, "What the hell is that?"

Tsukiko, Ishida, and Ichigo kept looking towards the sky. The hands opened the crack more as a face appeared.

"It's huge." Tsukiko muttered.

"That bait..._couldn't_ have caused _this_..." Ishida tried to calculate what is happening.

"Why are you still denying it?" Ichigo told Ishida.

Hollows began to creep up behind the three unsuspected students. They started moving towards them and as soon as the surrounded them good, they finally took notice.

"Shit!" The three of them said.

The Hollows ran towards them, ready to feast on their souls. The all screamed a battle cry when unexpectedly it was replaced with screams of pain. The Hollows were being shot at countless of times, being finished off in an instant. All three of them looked towards the source where the bullets came. A large gun like weapon was shooting the blasts. It wasn't the weapon that surprised them. It was the person holding the weapon.

"H-Hello." Ururu said as she lowered the gun-like weapon.

"JINTA, HOMERUN!" yelled Jinta as he swung a large bat-like weapon. Immediately, the Hollows were gone.

Tessai used his large, mighty fists against a Hollow that was the same size as him. With one smack in the face, he brought his hand down towards the ground and destroyed the Hollows head. Dust now surrounded the area and as soon as it had settled, a voice called out.

"Kurosaki-san, Tsukiko-chan, we came to save you." Urahara yelled out as he waved his fan around and had his left hand on top of Ururu's head.

"Hat-and-Clogs?!"

"Urahara?!"

Jinta and Ururu continued fighting the Hollows as the three teens were astonished with the sight. Urahara simply stood there, fanning himself and smirking. He stood before all three of the students and began to tell them,

"We'll take the small fry. So, Kurosaki-san, you and my beloved goddaughter can concentrate on fighting _him_." Urahara pointed towards the sky, directing his finger to what was coming out of the crack. "Go on. There's no time for flapping your gums."

"It's a Menos." Rukia told the two mod souls.

"Menos?" They both asked her.

"It's a gigantic Hollow said to be born when hundreds of Hollows pile atop each other and intermingle. But...I've never seen one except in a textbook illustration. Menos Grande...It's impossible...for such a thing to come out. This is the Royal Special Affairs department's jurisdiction. That's not something a single Shinigami can fight." Rukia explained, dread coming out of her voice.

"You guys, is it just me or is that things freakishly huge and ugly?" Tsukiko asked them as she kept her eyes on the gigantic being.

Ishida replied to her question just by simply saying, "How insanely huge."

"There's no point in tryin' to think how to fight a monster like that." Ichigo declared with a grin.

"What do you freakin' mean? We should come up with a plan." Tsukiko argued. 'How the hell can we fight a _thing_ like that without one? Use your damn brain Ichigo!' She thought in her head as she waited for his response.

"Things like that..." he began "...you just slice and dice and cut it down the best you can!" Ichigo yelled as he lifted his giant Zanpakutou. "There's nothing else to do! Here we go, you guys!"

"Damn it Ichigo! Wait for me! You're gonna get yourself killed, or worse!" Tsukiko shouted towards the eager Ichigo as she followed him.

Ichigo yelled back to her as he kept on running, "What's worse than getting killed?!"

"W-Wait, Kurosaki, Takeshi!" Ishida stammered as he was the last one to run after the two Shinigamis.

Barely appearing at the scene, Rukia, Kon, and Luna run towards the field in which the others were barely at.

"Ichigo! Tsukiko! Stop! It's too powerful for you!" Rukia yelled towards them but then a figure appeared before her.

"Urahara...are you trying to get Ichigo and Tsukiko killed?!"

"Hardly." Urahara told her as he lifted two fingers in front of her face. "But still, please just watch quietly. This fight is a necessary one..."

Rukia simply fell towards the ground. Her body couldn't move as she realized, with wide eyes, what he had done to her. "This is...a binding spell..."

"For you..._and_ for them."

Ichigo ran towards the Hollow, screaming a somewhat battle cry. He gripped his blade with both hands as he jumped towards the Menos. By now, the Menos' body was coming out of the crack. Its figure was more terrifying for it was wearing nothing but black. Well except its shoes which were a chalky white. Ichigo struck down his blade towards the Menos' ankle, but he was simply kicked back.

"Ichigo!"

"Kurosaki!"

Ichigo was sent tumbling back, all the way to where Ishida and Tsukiko stood.

"I told you so." Tsukiko muttered as she watched Ishida prepare his glowing bow. Ishida raised the bow and prepared and arrow. He fired it towards the Menos' head, but there was no damage done just a tiny dent.

"Damn! Kurosaki, can you stand?" Ishida asked as he lowered his weapon.

"Sure..." Ichigo said as he began to face the boy and girl. "I'm actually okay." He saluted towards them. But as he spoke those words, blood fell from his forehead.

"What do you mean 'fine'?! Do you know that your forehead is freakin' bleeding?! What the hell were you thinking just running towards that-that thing like that?! You _could_ have gotten killed!" Tsukiko ranted as Ishida just yelled at him.

"What the hell were you thinking? How did you intend to beat it with that attack?"

Tsukiko then said, "Yeah, what he said as well!" while pointing towards Ishida.

"Well...I thought if I cut it away piece by piece from the feet up, the head would come down." Ichigo explained as he pictured his explanation in his head.

"WHAT?!" Tsukiko said, "That's like a kids' game or something! Oh for crying out loud...I know that you're smarter then that."

"Your brain must've been constructed unbelievably wrong." Ishida told him straight out. Ichigo just turned his head away, ignoring the last statement.

"Ain't that a little insensitive, Ishida?" Tsukiko asked him.

He ignored her and told Ichigo to stand. "Now stand..." He bent down towards Ichigo and placed his hand on Ichigo's Zanpakutou. "...let's form a new plan and-" But his statement was stopped, for his bow had grown triple its normal size.

'What's this...It's flowing into me...Is this...the effect of Kurosaki's power?' Ishida thought in his head as he examined the length of his power and Ichigo's spirit energy. Tsukiko watched in amazement at the new size of the Quincy's bow.

'Whoa.'

"But...I mean...a plan..." Ichigo began, but was interrupted by Ishida yelling out his name.

"Kurosaki!"

"Huh?" Ichigo was now stunned by the size of Ishida's weapon. He backed away as he gave off a yell. A sweat drop now formed on the back of his head as he looked in confusion. "What's with that bow?!" He yelled. "Why's it so huge?!"

"Just listen! We might be able to beat that thing." Ishida told Ichigo and Tsukiko. But with no avail, Ichigo was still confused.

The Menos Grande was fully out of the crack. Its body began walk around, heading itself towards where the Quincy and the Shinigamis were at. From afar, Orihime and Chad watched from a bridge.

"Can you see Ishida with Ichigo and Tsukiko next to him?" Chad asked Orihime as they just stared at the Menos.

"Yeah." Orihime said. "'Please watch from here', huh?" She quoted Urahara's words, why they should watch from a distance. '_Watch_..._and then choose_, is that what he means?' "...the path we'll walk." Orihime closed her eyes and thought of her brother and the day when Ichigo fought him. 'The truth is...The truth is, I'd never forgotten one bit of it. There was just nothing I _could_ do but doubt my memory.'

"Sado-kun..." Chad turned to look at her as she asked him, "What do you think we should do?"

"Okay, now we can fight!" Ishida yelled out. Tsukiko just stood next to them, laughing her heart out. Ichigo had an annoyed look, since he had to hold his Zanpakutou on top of Ishida's head.

"Oh man! Ishida you look like a unicorn with an overgrown horn!" She laughed as she held her stomach. "Where is my camera when I need it!? This is a freakin' Kodak moment right now. I could have photoshopped the image and added some wings for you Ishida and a rainbow behind you guys. Oh and Ichigo could be an overgrown leprechaun with tights and a little hat. Buahahaha!" She kept on laughing.

"Shut up!" Ichigo yelled. "How come you can't do this? Why do I gotta hold my Zanpakutou like this?"

"'Cause you're the one who owns the overgrown Zanpakutou and mine are just small." She confirmed as she took a seat on the floor. Ichigo just got annoyed and let go of his weapon.

"You're...stupid aren't you?" Ichigo told Ishida in a question form.

"What?! Quit complaining! If you release your spirit power at full blast in this pose..."

"And what an interesting pose it is. I mean it is very manly and all." Tsukiko interrupted.

Ishida glared at Tsukiko and turned back towards Ichigo to finish his explanation. "I should be able to shoot and absurdly powerful arrow. Don't let your incredible spirit power ooze uselessly."

"Dude...don't, like, say 'ooze'." Both Ichigo and Tsukiko said.

"Come on, control your spirit power and increase it to maximum output!"

"How?" Ichigo asked.

"What?! You can't?!" Ishida said shocked at Ichigo's question.

"You see Ishida," Tsukiko started as she stood from the ground, "We haven't actually taught him how to do that, yet. We have just done the basics like fighting and stuff."

"Then how has he fought up the Hollows 'til now?" He questioned the both of us.

"I say luck." Tsukiko said as she had her hand on her chin.

"Spur of the moment?" Ichigo just said.

"Spur of the moment...luck...Of all the nonsensical..."

"I don't really know about that stuff! If my spirit power is really badass, maybe it's _always_ on full blast!" Ichigo told him.

Tsukiko was about to say something, but a shadow loomed over them. The Menos Grande was now right in front of them. It stared down to where they were at and then, a blast of red energy began to form in front of its mouth.

"A Cero...That beast...It intends to fire a Cero _here_?! Run! Quickly! If that hits you, there won't be an atom left!" Rukia yelled out.

Ichigo gulped. Tsukiko gripped Kuro Maho. Ishida just looked intently and then spoke.

"There really is no other choice. Kurosaki, grab the sword once mo-"

Ichigo grabbed his sword and ran towards the Menos.

"Kurosaki!"

"Ichigo! What are you doing?!" Tsukiko was about to run after him, but she stopped when he said.

"Stay back!" He yelled at her.

'Stay back? Do I do as he says...no...We are a team. No matter the danger, we have to work together.' Tsukiko ran after him.

"Takeshi!"

She ran towards Ichigo and as she ran, the Menos readied his attack. It had unleashed the fury. As the red ray of energy burst towards Ichigo, Ichigo lifted up his blade to block. Tsukiko stopped. She stared in shock at the sight in front of her. Ichigo managed to block the attack.

"What?!" Ishida said. 'What is this bizarre spirit force? Kurosaki's power is expanding?' Ichigo's previous words had flown through Ishida's head.

"...maybe it's _always_ on full blast!"

'That's it.' He thought. 'That _couldn't_ be true. No matter how high one's spirit power...if they leave that tap on all the time, their spirit power should dry up right away. The fact he can't control his spirit power...means basically, he has too much of it.

'If you turn the tap and an unexpected amount of water comes out...most people would be startled and turn the water off. If he's like that too...If his usual abilities _are _in the off mode...And if...by some impetus...it was wrenched open...'

Urahara, Rukia, Luna, and Kon stared at Ichigo. "Almost time I think." Urahara said.

Ichigo lifted his blade upwards, sending back the attack towards the Menos Grande. Everyone was now in shock. Tsukiko had to brace herself so she wouldn't fall. Ishida had to do the same. The others, however, didn't have to, thanks to the distance that they had. The Menos screamed and retreated back towards its crack in the sky.

"The Menos..." Rukia said.

"...is leaving." Ishida stated.

"Ichigo..." Tsukiko whispered.

Ichigo stood there, breathing heavily and smiling in triumph. He lifted two fingers up to make a V.

"VICTORY!!" He yelled out towards the rest as he faced them.

"He's incredible..." said Ishida as he just watched him.

"Superb." Tessai said as he, Jinta, and Ururu watched after finishing their job of beating the Hollows. "I understand now what the manager saw in him."

The crack in the sky began to fade away.

"Hey..." Ichigo said as he now was in front of Ishida and Tsukiko. "What? You could thank me and Tsukiko, you know." He directed towards Ishida. "We cleaned up your mess for you. Don't you think that's worth a 'thank you'?" Ichigo then began to wobble back and forth, until he fell towards the ground.

"Ichigo!" Tsukiko yelled as she ran towards her partner.

"I can't sta-" He couldn't finish his sentence. His spirit energy began to leak out at a rapid rate, causing a bright light to appear. Tsukiko and Ishida had to shield their eyes from the blinding light.

"W-What's happening?!" Ichigo screamed out as his Zanpakutou began to glow a yellow-orange color.

"'The Zanpakutou's shape is starting to deform." Ishida said.

"Because he suddenly released his power." Rukia said from where she sat. "At this rate, his body won't last!"

Ichigo began to scream. Tsukiko kneeled down next to him.

'I have to do something.' She thought. 'But what can I do?'

"That's it!" She heard Ishida scream. He ran to where Tsukiko and Ichigo were at when he suddenly his bow increased in size. 'This is all...I have to do. I'll just release the spirit power Kurosaki can't control. Hopefully, Takeshi understands what I am doing so she can follow my example.' He thought in his head.

Tsukiko watched him. Ishida kept on releasing his arrows towards the sky. 'That's it.' She thought. Tsukiko held both her sais in her right hand. With her left hand, she placed it on Ichigo's back. 'Let's do this.'

"Mystic Shadow Strike!" A much larger and wider black beam emitted from her sais. She kept the attack going on continuously. Sweat dripped from her forehead as she kept on releasing black beams. 'I can do this. I know I can. If it means me getting hurt, then so be it.'

Ichigo moved his head towards right. There he saw Ishida releasing arrows in a continuous rate. The arrows were extremely long in length compared to the normal ones. "What are you doing?!" Ichigo said.

"Shut up!"

"You arm's all bloody!" Ichigo screamed towards him.

"Shut up! Can't you see that _we_ are trying to save you?!"

"'We'?" Ichigo moved his head towards the other side and there he saw Tsukiko doing the exact same thing with her weapon.

"I told you..." Ishida released another arrow. "If we three don't survive this, we won't have each other to beat up." He kept on releasing arrows and then yelled out, "Survive so I can beat on you, Kurosaki Ichigo! And try and beat me, too, with Takeshi, Kurosaki Ichigo!"

Tsukiko kept on releasing her attacks. Her fingers began bruising from the grip she had on Kuro Maho. 'Is this how it's like, to have an enormous amount of power and not know how to control it? Why? With every beam I discharge, it feels as if my body can't hold it.' Her arms began to shake. 'I'm getting tired. I can feel it. I want-no. I need to learn to be able to withstand this large power and perhaps, gain my own. Ichigo, how can you handle this large amount of power?' She closed her eyes and then she fell towards the ground and passed out.

'I'm sorry, Sensei.' Ishida reflected. 'I...wanted to avoid seeing the truth by hating the Shinigamis. I wanted to never see that it was I who couldn't save you. Today, I...will save a Shinigami...with the help of another Shinigami. Can I be forgiven? I am a weak student who could not give up my life for you.' Ishida fell to the ground down on his knees. "Can you forgive me...Grandfather?"

Ichigo's extra amount of spirit power was now calmed down. He lied flat on his back. "How could I beat someone...with that look on their face..." He moved to look at Tsukiko who now lied on her side. "Thanks Tsukiko...Thanks Ishida...Now we can beat each other up."


	15. Worries and Troubles

**Hi everyone! So here is another chapter here. Thanks a lot SaiyukiSucker for the review. Now to the story!!**

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Chapter 15: Worries and Troubles

The next morning, Tsukiko awoke to the sound of her cell phone ringing. She moved on around her bed, groaning, not waking to move for her body ache. The physical wounds that had appeared on her soul were now being felt through her body. Her right hand now shows her wounds from the day before. A dark purple hand grabbed her phone and flipped it open to answer.

"Hello?" Tsukiko's voice was groggy, showing that she was woken from her slumber.

"Hello my dear! How are you feeling this grand morning?" Urahara's cheerful voice was on the receiver.

"What is it Urahara? I'm sleeping." She told him in an aggravated tone. 'Uhh why is my sleep always interrupted?'

"Well, you shouldn't be sleeping since you have school in like half an hour."

"Yeah right." She looked at her clock and screamed. "Ah it's seven twenty five! Damn it! Bye Urahara gotta go!" She hanged up the phone and ran to get dressed.

Urahara placed the phone down, giggling. He looked at Jinta and gave him a thumb up. "Good job, Jinta, for changing her clock to be an hour ahead."

"No problem boss!"

Tsukiko was finally ready in a record of eight minutes. She was fixing her tie, when she tripped on an object that was in front of the stairs.

"GAAAHHHHH!!"

She tumbled down, the object following her as well. Once she had reached the bottom of the stairs, she landed in with her legs in a V shape. The object she tripped on was none other than Luna. Luna yelped in pain, holding her stuffed tail screaming, "The pain, the pain!" Tsukiko just held her head with her right hand, but immediately pulled back, for it began to hurt as hell.

"Luna why the hell were you there in the first place?!"

"I was sleeping until you came out of no where in a rush!"

"Well I am late for school so get in the bag!"

"You're not late for school" Luna said in a 'I-know-I-am-right voice.

Tsukiko just looked at her and said one word. Well it's more like a phrase. "Huh?"

"It's barely six thirty three."

Her body twitched and she yelled out one name so loud that the whole neighborhood heard. "URAHARA!!"

"Ah choo!" The shop owner sneezed. "Who's talking about me?"

Tsukiko ended up leaving her house around seven fifteen. The entire way to school, she kept on thinking up ideas how to murder the perverted shop keeper so that no one would find out that it is her.

'Hmmm, maybe I should poison some of his tea. Then the blame would entirely be on Tessai and I would get away with it. Buahhaha!'

"Tsukiko-chan?" a voice called out to her.

"Huh?" She stopped and turned to look at the owner of the voice. "Orihime? What are you doing up so early?"

The two girls walked along the side of the road as Orihime told her that she was so excited that summer vacation was coming up. Tsukiko was somewhat excited as well. Her birthday was during summer vacation and she really wanted to spend that time relaxing and not doing anything in particular.

"Oh look there's Kuchiki-san. Kuchiki-san!" Orihime yelled out to the girl as she ran to catch up to her.

"Wait up, Orihime!" Tsukiko ran after the bubbly girl.

"Good morning!" Orihime told her.

"Hey Rukia." Tsukiko smiled at her.

"Good morning to you, Inoue-san, Takeshi-san."

"Let's walk together to school?" Tsukiko asked the short, raven haired girl.

"Yes, I'd love to. But if I may say Inoue-san and Takeshi-san, you're both awfully early."

"Well, of course." Tsukiko and Rukia both stopped as Orihime stood and raised her hands up in a fist. "I mean come on, summer vacation's coming soon. So much goes through my head and I just can't sleep, as you can see!"

"Yeah we can see." I mumbled.

"Why are you early Takeshi-san?"

"My evil godfather made my changed my clock to an hour early. So I basically am early because I got pranked."

"That must of sucked."

"It did."

"Oh yeah..." Orihime suddenly said out loud, catching our attention. "Do you have any plans for summer vacation, Kuchiki-san?"

This surely caught Tsukiko's attention, for she herself has been wondering whether how much longer she is going to stay. She remembered clearly that once Rukia gained her Shinigami powers back she was going to leave. But no one knew how long it was going to take.

"Uh...No, not really." Rukia smiled as she answered.

"You know...in August...there's a big fireworks festival. Me, Tatsuki, Tsukiko and the others were planning to go together. Do you want to go with us?" Orihime invited.

"Fireworks festival?"

"Yeah. Lot's of explosions, food, games, the works." Tsukiko said as she moved her weight to her left leg. "You should come, since it will be a lot of fun."

"Invite Kurosaki-kun, too. It'll be like when they filmed the Holy Ground Drop-In here." Orihime told her as we began to walk again. "It'll be a lot of fun."

Rukia smiled as she said, "That was quite a chaotic day."

"You can say that again." Tsukiko mumbled.

"Yeah..." Orihime looked towards the sky as she continued, "But...he has a nice side, too. Like how he came to the event just to be with his family. His family's so funny. He should enjoy himself more. Kurosaki-kun always keeps his brow wrinkled like this." Orihime imitated his scowl.

"I used to think you weren't fond of Kurosaki-kun."

'She actually has a semi thing for him.' Tsukiko thought in her head.

"Well actually, if you look closely, he has a funny face." Rukia laughed at her comment, as Tsukiko tried to figure out what was funny about Ichigo's face.

"Come with us to the fireworks festival."

"I'll think about it." Was Rukia's answer.

"Ey, Orihime. Are we gonna dress up this year?" Tsukiko asked her. The year before, they were dressed for the occasion and Tsukiko was the only one who wasn't. "I want to know ahead of time so that I won't bust a last year."

"I'm not sure," the bubbly girl said, "but once I find out, I'll let you know."

"Thanks!"

Meanwhile at a bridge, a black cat looked down where all the cars were at. The feline moved its body towards the edge of the pillar and jumped off. With grace, the cat landed on its four paws, now running to its destination.

It was P.E. time in Karakura High. Well, it was almost over. Tsukiko was currently holding a soccer ball in her hands as she stood besides Tatsuki. Across from the two was Orihime, who was holding a baseball bat.

"Okay. Come on! Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime shouted to her. Behind Orihime were seven girls cheering on Orihime, who got ready to hit the ball.

At the same time, Kon was up on a tree devising his plan to be discovered by Orihime, just so he can be held in her bosom.

"First, I'll lay before Inoue-san's eyes and play the helpless stuffed animal. She's as kind as Kwanyin...she'll certainly embrace me gently and welcome me into her Valley of the Gods. That's right! From the beginning, my target was Inoue-san, her and her alone. Yes!" The perverted plushie began his operation.

"Alright get ready Orihime!" yelled Tsukiko as she handed the ball over to the pitcher. "Tatsuki, go!"

Tatsuki gave a nod as she lowered the ball to the ground. Immediately she kicked the ball and ran with it. In front of the ball, was Kon, who didn't realize that he was being tailed by a ball.

"Here it comes!" Tatsuki shouted. By now, Kon finally noticed the ball, but it was too late. "Dragon Bazooka!!" With that, Tatsuki kicked the ball. The ball collided with Kon, sending him towards Orihime.

"A perfect pitch!" Orihime readied her bat and swung with full force as it came to contact with the ball. "Yeah!" She said as she landed a home run. "First point scored!"

Tsukiko ran towards Orihime and said to her, "Orihime, I don't think this Baseccer you thought up is all it's cracked up to be."

"I agree." Tatsuki said. "First of all, don't pretend like you're gonna dump beer on the coach."

Orihime stopped and said, "Really?"

"Yeah. Anyways', we should stop playing since break is going to end soon. I'll get the ball and go put it back with the others." Tsukiko told them and then ran towards the ball. She ran towards where she last saw the ball fly and looked around on the ground. 'Where the hell did that ball go?' She looked up and there it was, stuck on a branch. "Ah crap." She sighed. "Might as well start climbing."

Tsukiko grabbed a hold of the tree trunk and readied herself. 'Alright. One...two...three!' She grabbed a hold of the tree and climbed up. She was going on a good pace, until her grip began to loosen up. "Crap!" She stumbled a bit on the tree. She sighed and began climbing once again. She reached her arm out and grabbed the ball. "Yes!" She pumped her free hand in the air.

"Uh oh. AHHHH-OOF!" She landed on her back, ball on her stomach. 'This has got to be a really bad day so far.' She stood up from the ground and dusted herself off. 'At least I didn't land on my hand.' Once she got a hold of the ball, she ran back towards the sports equipment shed. There, she found Ichigo, Mizuiro, and Keigo.

"This is the last, right?" Ichigo asked the two boys behind him.

"No. This is the last." Tsukiko stated as she was right between Keigo and Mizuiro. "Here." She handed the ball to Ichigo.

"Thanks."

"Now, it's the last one."

"Yeah, thanks." Mizuiro said to him.

"Hey Ichigo, are you alright? You know, from yesterday?" Tsukiko whispered to Ichigo.

"I should be the one asking you that. But yeah, I'm alright. How about you?"

She lifted her right, bandaged hand and said, "I'll live. It's just bruised badly." Suddenly, Mizuiro's voice caught their attention.

"Hey. Ishida-kun hasn't come to school yet, has he?"

"I saw him yesterday." Keigo said. Once he had said this, Ichigo and Tsukiko were now worried. "He was mumbling to himself in Chuuou Park...in like this hammy acting voice."

'That Asano...he was nearby?!' Both Tsukiko and Ichigo thought. 'That was _close_...'

"I'll bet you he's in the theatre club. There was these weird old dude around him. And there were explosions, too!"

'Dear God...thank you for making Asano stupid.' They both thought together.

"C'mon guys, we should get back and change for class." Tsukiko told the two boys.

"Yeah! We should head back."

"Ah, ok." The two gossiping boys agreed.

"I'll race ya, Ichigo!" Tsukiko said and then ran off.

"Hey!"

Once all the students were dressed in their uniforms, they headed back to class for the next lesson. Everyone was paying attention to Ochi-sensei as she rambled on the lesson for the day. Tsukiko tried to pay attention, but she couldn't for some reason. She began to bite the insides of her cheek.

'I need something to chew on!!' She thought in her head. Tsukiko was about to search inside her backpack when Ochi-sensei's voice spoke.

"Ishida..." The whole class, including Tsukiko turned to face the door. Ishida stood there, hands and fingers bandaged. "How did you get hurt like that?"

"I fell down the stairs."

Silence was in the classroom now. 'That was a lame excuse' Tsukiko thought in her head. Even her excuse was more believable. She had told her sensei that she fell at work and they all bought it.

"Hmm...that's fine. Go sit down, I'm going to continue the lecture."

Whispers were being said all over the class. Tsukiko turned to face Ishida, noting how bad her injury was compared to him. 'I shouldn't even complain. Although, it does hurt when I write.'

"Don't think too much about it." Rukia told Ichigo as he kept looking at Ishida and sometimes glancing at Tsukiko. He got caught red-handed. "It's not your fault. It was their own fault that they got those wounds."

"I wasn't." Ichigo stubbornly said. "Wounds like that aren't worth worrying about."

"Oh, who said '_don't worry_'? I said _don't think about it_." Now he was clearly caught.

"You little..."

"TsuuuukiKO!" Tsukiko lifted her head up to see Keigo right in front of her.

"What is it Keigo?"

"Would you like to join me for lunch up on the roof?"

Tsukiko placed a finger on her chin. "Hmmm...hmmmm...hhhhmmmmmm..." She looked at him and said "No."

His face was crestfallen. "Why don't you never eat with me!?"

She got up from her seat, with her food and told him, "I'm already going to eat with Orihime and the girls." She began walking towards the door and said, "Next time, tell me earlier."

Tsukiko walked out of the building and looked up in the sky. "What a nice day."

"Tsukiko-chan!"

Behind her came Orihime, Tatsuki and Mahana.

"Ah hey! Why don't we go look for Kuchiki-san and ask her if she wants to join us?" suggested Tsukiko to the other girls.

"Yeah sounds good."

The walked near the fence or near the trees to search for Rukia. In her mind, Tsukiko was wondering what her Godfather was doing. Her left fist held the amount of desire for how she wanted to beat him up. She could have slept in a bit longer and then used her excuse for being late to class.

"Ah there she is." Interrupted her train of thoughts. Not knowing where she was walking towards to, the other three girls had found Rukia sitting on a branch.

Mahana then shouted out to Rukia, "Kuchiki-san, wanna eat lunch together?" Rukia was quite for a second, but then agreed to the idea.

Currently in front of Urahara Shoten, Jinta and Ururu were sweeping the front of the sore. Well, it was more like Ururu who was sweeping. Jinta kept merely playing around.

"Jinta-kun, you're supposed to help clean."

"Shut up. These days, a man says nothing and plays soccer!" Jinta stated as he held up his broom like a bat. "Screw kick!!" He swung at a pretend ball. "Screw...Screw...Screw!"

Ururu then sensed something behind her. She turned around and there was the black cat. She walked towards the door and opened it. "Tessai-san, Kisuke-san...a kitty." She pointed towards her right. Immediately Urahara ran out the door and there he smiled with delight.

"If it isn't Yoruichi-san!" The cat, known as Yoruichi got scared as soon as Urahara ran towards it. Tessai, merely walked outside in a calm matter, unlike the owner. "Welcome home." He said as he lifted the black cat up. "Woo! Upsy daisy!" He said as he twirled it around.

"What's with the cat?" Jinta asked.

"She's called Yoruichi-san..." Tessai began "and she's the owner's closest friend."

"His closest friend is a cat...In some ways, our owner is...pathetic."

"Well, you _could_ put it that way."

Back at school, Tsukiko walked next to Rukia as they headed towards their destination to eat. Once there, there were three more girls waiting on them. As the rest took a seat, the order went, starting from the left: Chizuru, Ryou, Michiru, Mahana, Rukia, Tsukiko, Tatsuki, and Orihime.

Tsukiko opened up her lunch and smiled. Having that extra time thanks to her Godfather, she managed to add more food to her lunch. She had onigiri filled with salmon, teriyaki chicken, and white rice. For dessert, well she had a chocolate bar. 'Hooray for food!'

"Tada!" Orihime lifted up some cake looking type of food. We all just stared at it. Wondering what it was. "Today's lunch is a castilla sandwich."

"What's in between it, Orihime?" Tsukiko wondered. She already knew about the bubbly girls weird taste in food.

"Sweet-bean jelly between slices of catilla. An irresistible creation for lovers of sweets"

'Ugh, I know I love my sweets and all, but that, no way! Besides, how can she eat those types of food?' Tsukiko question in her head as a sweat drop appeared. Orihime simply took a bit and began to eat her meal.

"You made _another_ thing like that?" Tatsuki asked her.

Tsukiko just followed along and ate her chicken with her chopsticks. Bite after bite, she devoured her chicken and rice. With a pleased smile, she finished it all. 'Man I was hungry! Rice ball time!' She was about to take another bite when Michiru said,

"How come Orihime can eat that stuff and never get fat?"

"Obviously all the nutrition goes to her breast." Ryou told her.

"I highly doubt that." Tsukiko said as she took a bite of her rice ball.

"Then where do you suppose it goes."

"Hmm..." Tsukiko thought. "Maybe there's a black hole in her stomach. That's why she is thin."

The topic of Orihime's breast and stomach finally went away, too bad for Chizuru. The girls were mostly talking about things they planned on doing during the weekend. Tsukiko opened up her water bottle and began taking large gulps when Mahana asked Rukia,

"Kuchiki-san, do you have the hots for Kurosaki?"

Immediately, Tsukiko and Rukia spat out their drinks. The topic of Ichigo was surely going to be one that almost everyone was going to engage in. It was understandable why Rukia spat out her chocolate milk, but Tsukiko. Well that is a different story.

"'Scuse me?"

"More to the point, what's your current relationship with him, honestly?"

Rukia whipped her face as she began to answer. "_Relationship_...we're just-"

"Hey, Mahana!" Michiru said, "That question was too straight-forward!"

'Oh God please don't tell me this is why we invited Rukia to lunch?!'

"What're you talking about? I'm asking for _you_ since you guys were wondering, but couldn't ask."

"Hey speak for yourselves. I wasn't wondering about this type of thing." Tsukiko said.

"_I_ wasn't wondering..." Michiru tried to cover her true intentions.

Chizuru flat out called her out and said, "Yeah it _was you_."

"Yeah, Michiru doesn't get along with Ichigo." Tatsuki said to the group.

"I don't hate him or anything...I just kinda think his face is a _little_ scary..."

"You think so?" Orihime asked.

"Yeah, I mean his face seems pretty normal to me." Tsukiko pointed to herself. "It's just normal."

"I think he has a funny face."

After what Orihime said, Tsukiko just gained about two sweat drops on the back of her head. She closed her eyes for a second and pictured Ichigo's face. There she saw his amazing brown colored eyes and for some reason, instead or seeing the normal scowl on his face, it was a smile. A real smile in fact. 'He has a cute smile. Wait what am I thinking?!' She shook her head to get the image out.

"Are you alright, Takeshi-san?" Rukia asked with concern.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Just me and my _wild_ imagination had a moment just now. Hahah" She laughed as she rubbed her neck. 'Phew that was close.'

"What?! Orihime, since when are _you_ comfortable around him?" she was asked.

For a moment, Rukia and Tsukiko believed that Rukia got away without answering Mahana's question. But it was too late, for Mahana said while scaring Rukia,

"So? When it comes down to it, what's the deal?"

All the girls looked curiously at Rukia, well almost. Tsukiko just sat there not caring for she already knew the answer.

"Kurosaki-kun is..." she paused "Kurosaki-kun is just a friend!"

Mahana didn't believe her and said, "Seriously!"

"Yes."

"No romantic feelings? Not even a little?" Michiru asked.

"Yes, not even a little."

"Aww, that's too bad. If Kuchiki-san liked Kurosaki-kun...I'd fall for him...then Tsukiko'd fall for him...while we're at it, everyone'd fall for Kurosaki-kun together. That way, the girl's team would have an overwhelming victory." Orihime calculated.

"Tatsuki, please stop her or something. She is freaking me out a bit right now." Tsukiko said as she pushed Tatsuki towards Orihime.

"Yeah, this girl's talking about random stuff again..."

Chizuru just began to laugh and we all looked at her. 'Oh great, she is plotting something.'

"A sudden team competition sounds fun, but...I'd want to keep Orihime's first look of ecstasy all to myself. On that note..." she lunged towards Orihime, removing her bow and unbuttoning her shirt "...we'll first start with individual competition! Come on, Orihime!"

"AS IF!!" Screamed Tatsuki and Tsukiko at the same time. Both girls punched Chizuru right in the stomach. Chizuru stumbled and then fell to the ground while saying "Nice punch line."

"Not a 'punch line', a 'punch'!" Tatsuki yelled at her.

"Oh. Come on, Tatsuki, Tsukiko. Let me and Orihime be-"

"Over my dead body!" Tsukiko yelled as she and Tatsuki kicked her. Well more like stomped.

The two girls kept on kicking her out of pure amusement. Suddenly, Tsukiko's cell phone went off. She grabbed her cell phone and flipped the black electronic open. There held a new text message sent to her by the one and only Ichigo.

"So when am I gonna get that dinner you owe me?"

She laughed and walked back toward the tree and slouched on it. She replied,

"Lol, when are you gonna be free?"

She sent the text and waited for a response. While waiting, she grabbed her chocolate bar and began to eat it. A vibration came from her left hand and she opened it.

"How bout Saturday after the dance recital? What r ur plans for today?"

"Sounds good. Gonna go to work and right after get some training with Hat-and-Clogs."

"Alright so Saturday it is. Oh work and training. Man I still cant believe that he is ur godfather!"

"Lol. I know, but he is the closet person I have as family here. C u in like 3 minutes. ."

"Lol C ya."

School finished in a flash and immediately, Tsukiko went out of the door. Today was going to be her last and final day working and she really wanted to enjoy it. She loved those kids as if they were her own. With them, she had patience. With some people her age or older, she didn't have patience whatsoever. She put on her black Chucks and ran to work.

Rukia ran out the school and yelled out, "Ichigo!" Ichigo stopped where he was at and faced Rukia.

"What's wrong? A Hollow?!"

"No," she said while facing down, "not that." Silence fell upon the two but then she continued. "Are you...feeling alright?"

"Yeah. Everything feels fine." Ichigo said as he moved his left arm.

"I see. That's good."

"Is another one like yesterday coming?"

"Menos Grandes could hardly appear that often."

"You're...acting kinda weird today. Did something happen?"

Rukia tried to answer but she didn't know what to say. "Well..." A scream stopped her from saying anything else. They both looked at where the scream was coming from and there they saw the culprit.

"Ichigoooo!!" Kon screamed as he ran towards them. He immediately jumped towards Rukia's chest. "I'm sorry! I was wrong to run away from home! I get it now." Tears were streaming down from his black beady eyes. "With you _is_ the place where I really belong! Ichigo!" He rubbed his face against Rukia's chest.

"You ran away?" Ichigo questioned. "You-" Ichigo then finally realized that Kon was still clinging onto Rukia. "Hey, I'm over here!" He said as he pulled Kon's tail.

"Since I ran away, the stormy seas of life crashed mercilessly down on me." Cried Kon. "I...I'll go back to your room!"

"'Go back', huh?" Rukia said in a dazed tone.

"What's _wrong_?"

"No, I was just thinking that Kon's really become attached to you."

He laughed, "Just one more hassle. But man, you're sure jacked up. Your cotton's showing." Ichigo pulled his tail much harder and managed to yank him. Kon was now dangling.

"Hey! What do ya think you're doing?! Put me back! I was enjoying myself!" Kon yelled as the two spoke.

"I'm surprised he isn't dead."

"No choice, let's have _him_ take a look."

"Alright girls, have a good nights rest since tomorrow is our big day!"

"Bye Tsukiko-sensei!"

Tsukiko smiled as her now former students left the dance studio. She sighed. She was going to miss working here. It was something she loved to do and now she has to leave. Tsukiko remained in her black knee-high sweats and green cut shirt and left the studio. Her iPod was blasting her music loud, so that she would shut out all the sound around her.

Panic At The Disco was blasting out loud as she smiled. 'Hopefully this training helps me out.' But even with the smile that was plastered on her face, she still had a feeling that something wrong was going to happen. Something unexpected. She shivered those feelings away. She brought her left hand up and began to bite her nails. It was always a habit of her to bite her nails when she was nervous or bored. And right now, she was certainly feeling nervousness.

"Maybe some training will make me forget these feelings."

The black female cat looked upwards towards the orange some what cloudy sky. Behind her, the door slide open and out came Urahara with a bowl in one hand and milk in the other.

"What's wrong, Yoruichi-san?" he said while bending down "Looks like it's gonna rain?"

"Don't give me that cheap acting, Kisuke. You know, don't you?" Yoruichi spoke to him in a serious tone. "_They_ are here."

"Would you like to talk about that before or after your milk? And don't forget, my goddaughter is coming for training."

"Alright Tsukiko, what is it that you want to work on?"

Tsukiko now stood before Urahara, ready to train.

"I want to work on my spirit energy. I want to be able to control it and harness it to be able to defend and attack."

Her voice showed that she meant business. No matter how hard, painful or troublesome it was going to be, she wanted to be able to do this. Urahara stood in front of her, waving his fan as he looked right into her eyes. Besides him was Yoruichi, looking between the two.

'This girl is rather interesting. Smart to know what to work on.'

"Are you sure that you don't want to work on your Bankai or fighting styles?" He questioned her.

"I am sure. I know that I am not ready to achieve Bankai so I would like to take my time with that. With my fighting skills, I am happy with my current level. I want to do this. Once I master this, then I want to continue with learning fighting methods so that I can combine the two."

Urahara smiled at the girl. "So be it. I would rather have you stay here tonight and not go out anywhere. Until the morning. No matter what happens, you have to stay here unless I tell you to. There are spare clothes in the extra room."

Tsukiko was confused. 'Why does he not want me to leave? Unless something was going to happen, but what?' "Alright. I won't leave unless to anywhere unless you want me to and thanks."

"You have your mod soul with you, right?"

"Yes..."

"Good."

"Hey, Rukia! Dinner time." Ichigo said as he walked into his room with a tray of food. He closed his door and looked inside of his room. "Huh?"

Rukia was no where to be found. Ichigo walked to his desk and placed the tray on there.

"What's with her? She's out somewhere again." He walked away not noticing the paper that was on his desk.

Outside of the Kurosaki residence, Rukia looked at the former house that she was living in. She took one last look and she ran off, not knowing her destination. All she knew was that she had to leave.

Appearing above the Kurosaki residence, two Shinigamis appeared. One, a red head, was wearing a form of high tech sun glasses while the other, with long black hair, stood besides him.

"Rear appearance match, one hundred and thirteen. Neural attachment ratio, eighty-eight point five. Are you _serious_? She's really in a faux body. And I thought the Imaging Agency's information was useless." The red head lifted his glasses and spoke, "Kuchiki Rukia...We _found_ you."


	16. Problems that One Encounters

**Hey there everyone! Here is the next chapter for you readers. Thank you SaiyukiSucker for the review! Oh and I am thinking about changing the title of this little story, so if anyone has any suggestions, I would gladly appreciate the help. **

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Chapter 16: Problems that One Encounters In the Road

As Rukia ran, she began to remember all of the memories that she had made in the real world.

"Gimme the sword, Shinigami." Ichigo's voice went through her head.

"I'm not 'Shinigami'. I'm Kuchiki Rukia."

"Kuchiki-san, do you have the hots for Kurosaki?" Mahana voice came out.

She remembers spitting out the chocolate milk and saying "'Scuse me?"

"So what did you think Rukia?" Tsukiko asked her after she finished work.

"How were they able to do all those moves? How are you able to perform such stunts?"

"My name is Kuchiki. I will be sitting next to you." She said to Ichigo, the first day she was at school.

"Y-You!"

"...how does one drink this?" Rukia remembered asking Ichigo while holding a carton of milk.

"'How'? You poke the straw in and drink it, obviously."

"Bwahahahahahahaha!"

Ichigo and Tsukiko just stared at her as if she was insane.

"Oh, no. You must go to the nurse's office." She dragged Ichigo.

More memories of Ichigo, Tsukiko, and her old classmates went through her head.

'If I must eventually leave this place...then all these things would be nothing more than shackles...sympathy...friendship...the feeling of closeness...Such bother some things..._None_ of these are even necessary emotions for a Shinigami...You're a _mess_, Kuchiki Rukia...I _have_ involved myself in this world a bit too long after all.'

"YES!" A voice screamed out, causing Rukia to stop her running. "You _do_ get it."

Above an electricity pole, a figure stood there looking down at Rukia. Rukia turned around and looked to where the voice was coming from. The male voice removed his Zanpakutou, reading himself for any fighting.

"Well...to put it another way...Since you stayed on this side so long...you basically got to live just a little longer...Rukia!"

Rukia stared wide-eyed at the person she was facing, "Renji...Abarai Renji?!"

Abarai Renji had jumped off from the pole. His Zanpakutou was held above his head. As he was close to landing, he swung down his blade, almost striking the girl. A flash of green erupted off the blade as it struck down.

"You had a pursuer from Soul Society closin' in behind you, and...you were so _lost in thought_ that you didn't realize it until I _spoke_?" The red head said to her. "I don't care if you _are _in a faux body, in just two or three months...you've gotten way too soft."

Renji lifted his blade and rested the guard on his shoulder. He looked at her intently and said, "Spit it out, Rukia." Rukia just stared at him, not saying a word. "Where's the human who took your powers?"

Now this caught Rukia off guard. "What are you talking about!? Just because I'm in a faux body doesn't mean my powers were taken. Furthermore, what makes you think the one who supposedly took them was human?"

"He _is_ human. Otherwise, you...wouldn't have that stupid human expression on your face!" Rukia's eyes were wide. She knew that he hit the spot as he continued. "You're just another kid from Rukongai like me...and still you were lucky enough to get taken in by the _Noble House of Kuchiki_."

He walked a little to the side and continued, "With all that money and effort spent on you, weren't you supposed to become one of the Shinigami elite?! Eh?!" He lifted his left hand and pointed at her, "You're _Kuchiki_ freakin' _Rukia_, damn it! There's _no way_ it's right for you to wear that human expression!" Sakura petals floated in the air. "Ain't that right, Kuchiki-taicho?"

Behind the two, another man appeared. Rukia's face held a "human" expression. Her eyes were wide open as the figure approached them. The male's long scarf flew with the wind as his hair also followed. Rukia turned around to face him. His eyes were dark and blank as if there was no emotion in it whatsoever.

"Byakuya...nii-sama..."

"Rukia..." he said as he continued looking at her.

Behind Rukia, Renji prepared for another attack. He swung his weapon but this time, Rukia wasn't able to dodge it. She had barely escaped but received a cut on her right cheek.

Renji told her, "'The transfer of Shinigami powers to a human' is a _felony_, ya know." He then stood in front of her. "Leaving the execution to us, instead of the Correction Corps, was probably the Brass' version of kindness. Now, spill the location, Rukia. We're here...to capture you...and kill the guy who took your powers. Don't protect him. You realize, don't ya? You didn't dodge my first two attacks...I _let_ you dodge them. The next will kill you." He said as he readied his Zanpakutou.

He began to walk towards her as she began to back away from him. Kuchiki Byakuya just stood there, silent and watching. Renji swung his blade and as that happened, Rukia jumped in order to dodge the attack. Blood kept falling from her cheek. As Rukia stood to gain her balance, Renji came at her again and struck downwards. Rukia tumbled after the attack and regained her balance once again. Her right arm was now injured.

"Well, now..." Renji walked towards her. Once he was right in front of her, he prepared his weapon again. Before he was going to attack, a blue arrow appeared towards him. Renji dodged the attack and looked at the blue arrow that kept on going. He faced towards were it had came from and there was a black silhouette walking towards them.

"Two men with weapons attacking an unarmed girl...not a pleasant thing to see." The person said while walking towards the group. In his left arm, he held a plastic bag. "I don't really like that sort of thing."

"You can see us..." Renji said. "Who the hell are you?"

Ishida Uryuu stood before them, fixing his glasses as he said, "Just a classmate."

"_Classmate_?"

"One that hates Shinigamis, that is."

Kuchiki Byakuya had now moved towards Renji and Rukia began to stand from the ground.

'Ishida.' Rukia thought in her head. "Why are you here?"

"Just a coincidence." He told her. "It's nothing for you to worry about. If you must know...I suddenly wanted to go to this twenty-four-hours-a-day seamster shop chain, Sunflower Sewing...and was simply walking around the neighborhood in the middle of the night."

Rukia sweat dropped as he continued, "It's not like I took off because I was concerned when I sensed a Shinigami energy and brought this bag from home just for an excuse to be outside."

'Whoa...I didn't know he was mentally challenged..."

"Well...I don't blame you for being surprised, but..." Suddenly a blade swiped Ishida's bag and had cut him as well.

"I'm _askin'_ you a question over here. I said...who the hell are you? Well, if you don't feel like answerin', that's fine, too. I'll just kill you first."

"Wait, Renji!" Rukia said as she moved to defend Ishida. "He's not part of th-"

"What are you talking about?!" Ishida interrupted her. "I gave you your answer. I'm just one of Kuchiki Rukia's classmates. One that hates Shinigamis, that is."

"I call that _not answerin'_." Renji exclaimed.

Ishida closed his eyes for a few seconds and then spoke. "I'm Ishida Uryuu. Pleasure to meet you."

"Eh? What's with you all of a sudden?"

"Nothing. I just thought even a Shinigami...would at least want to know the _name_ of the man who defeated him." Ishida pushed up his glasses once again.

Renji began to shake in anger and said, "That's it...I'm gonna kill you!"

As this was happening, Ichigo was just finished doing his business in the bathroom. He sighed.

"Friggin' Rukia...is she _ever_ comin' home? It's already like _two AM_. I even had to call Tsukiko, who was asleep. Well, in that case, tonight I'll take a break from the Shinigami busin-" Ichigo was interrupted when he had heard muffling noises from inside the bathroom. He got scared and walked back towards the door. "What?! What's that sound?!"

He began searching for the source of the noise and heard it coming from behind the toilet.

"Here?" He said. He went down on his knees and looked behind the toilet. There he found the source of the noise. "You?! Kon?!" There was Kon, trapped in masking tape which was wrapped on the toilet and some covering his mouth so he wouldn't speak. Tears were leaking out of Kon's small beady eyes.

"What're you doing there?!" Kon shook his head as he tried to speak. "Didn't you go on a journey?" Ichigo questioned him. More head gestures happened and finally, Ichigo removed Kon from the tape.

"Man, I owe ya." Kon told him. "You seriously saved my ass."

"Yer welgobe." Ichigo said as he held his nose so he wouldn't smell Kon.

"Anyways, in that position, I couldn't tell _who_ came in...so I had to judge just by the aura and sounds to find out whether or not it was you." Kon laughed while Ichigo grabbed an air freshener. He sprayed down Kon and sent him flying backwards.

"W-W-W-What the hell d'ya think you're doing?!" He yelled as he jumped onto Ichigo. "Is that how you treat a best friend who's endured long hours of suffering?!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo yelled at him as he grabbed him. As he had a grip on Kon, Kon gave off a squeak. "Who said you're my best friend?! You stink!" He moved Kon to be further away from him.

"It ain't MY fault! Nee-san-" Then Kon finally remember something and said, "Oh yeah, Ichigo! It's Nee-san. Nee-san's in trouble!"

"I said, GET AWAY FROM ME!!" He pushed Kon towards the wall and Kon hit a few walls before landing on Ichigo's desk.

Kon looked towards his right and pointed at Rukia's letter. "Look at this! This here! You didn't notice this note, this WHOLE time?!"

Ichigo walked towards his desk and said, "What's this?"

"It's obvious! It's a goodbye message!"

"_Goodbye message_?" He said as he picked up the letter, his left hand now in his pocket. "The why...were you in the toilet instead of on a journey?"

"Listen, I'm not the one who wrote that!" The lion plushy said as he stood up and waved his arms around. "Jeez!" Then Kon began his story, "After the dress thing, I...stopped at home for a bit to say goodbye to Nee-san before leaving. And it wasn't 'cause I was running home with my tail between my legs! It's about honor.

"So I stopped by for a minute. Nee-san...Nee-san...left us behind and went away."

"Why?! Without one word to me?!"

"Shut up! Shut up! Who cares?!" Kon yelled. "I was here with her, you know. But she still left me behind with no explanation! WHO THE HELL CARES ABOUT YOU!!" KOn cried hysterically as Ichigo stood up from sitting. He looked at the letter as Kon still cried out, "Neeee-saaaan!"

"Damnit, freakin' Rukia...What the hell's she thinking?!" Ichigo said as he began to open the letter. Kon jumped onto Ichigo's shoulder so he could read the letter as well.

"Huh?! Enjoy deciphering this." Ichigo then began to read the letter. "Fotar myta reatasotans, I...mutast leatave. What's this?" He then looked at the lower left corner and saw a note that said 'Here's a hint.'

"_Here's a hint_! 'da hell's that?!" Ichigo questioned as he saw the weird animal drawing. "Crap...with that many 'ta's in the latter. It must be a tanuki! I'll read it without the 'ta's."

He then began to remove every "ta" that was on the letter and then read it all over again. "For my reasons, I must leave. Do not look for me, and...do not worry. After you read this letter, burn it. And if you can, hide out for a while. What's up with that? I still don't really know why she left."

"You don't know?" Ichigo looked towards Kon as Kon continued, "Something..._happened_. _Burn the letter_..._Hide out_...Why is Nee-san worrying about us so much? It's obvious. Something happened! Between her and Soul Society! So in order to not involve us, and the people around her...Nee-san...Nee-san left by herself! Nee-san...might be...d-"

"STOP!" Ichigo shouted at him. "Let's not let our imaginations get out of hand. Nothing will get solved just standing around talking like this."

"Ichigo..."

"Let's go, Kon. I'm gonna change to a Shinigami and follow Rukia."

"Yeah, 'bout time!" Kon said as he pumped his arm up towards the ceiling. "I'm in! W-Wait...Not again?!" He said as he finally realized what was going to happen to him.

"I got no choice but to jam my hand in yer mouth and pull the gikongan out."

"No!" Kon screamed. "S-Stop!" Ichigo ran towards Kon so he would be able to capture him. "No!" Kon screamed as he flew from Ichigo's grasp. "Don't!" Another miss.

"Hold it!" Ichigo told him.

"No way!!"

"Gotcha!" Ichigo managed to step on Kon's tail as he screamed no. He kicked Kon upwards and caught him. "Rukia's in deep trouble, this ain't the time to be like that! If I don't change to a Shinigami, I can't do anything!" Ichigo inserted his fingers as he searched for the pill.

"One 'hing got 'othing to do 'ith the other. Who'd 'e haffy avaot having a han' yammed in zeir 'outh?!" Kon managed to say as the hand roamed his mouth.

"You idiot, it's gross for me, too!"

"Hello there." A new voice said. Ichigo removed his fingers from Kon's mouth and looked towards where the voice came from. Urahara Kisuke was sitting on Ichigo's window ledge, his cane pointing directly to the boy. "I see you're in a bit of a bind. Anything I can do to help?"

Tsukiko laid on her futon. Her current mode was an unpleasant one since she was not allowed to leave her room, until she had to accompany Tessai. Her late night phone call from Ichigo kept her heart, mind, and soul from resting. She remembered the conversation perfectly. He asked her whether Rukia was with her and she had responded with a no, also mentioning that she was currently staying at Urahara's place.

She sighed as she got up to sit. There would be no sleep for her tonight. Her hands rubbed her temple to try and calm down. She knew that something was going to happen. She _knew_, yet she couldn't do anything about it. She was stuck, imprisoned in some form or way.

"I need to do something or whatnot. I can't sit here when there is something going on out there." She told herself as she got up from her current position. Her medium long black hair moved with her as she walked towards the sliding door. Once she opened it, she squeaked in surprise. There stood Tessai, arms crossed against his chest.

"Now where do you plan on going?"

'NOOO! There goes my plan. Excuse, excuse!!' "I had to go to the bathroom. Haha." Tsukiko rubbed the back of her neck as she told the giant man.

"Right," he said not believing her. "Go back inside your room. You know what the boss specifically told you."

"Yes I know, but I can't help to worry." She gave up her attempt to escape and returned to her room. She slid the door closed and saw Luna there lying asleep. She sighed and said, "I guess all I can do is wait."

Rukia's face showed one single expression: shock. Ishida fell down to the ground in defeat. Rukia glanced from Ishida to Renji.

"See, I told you so."

Blood began to leak out of Ishida's body. He coughed and lied motionless on the ground.

'He's strong...' Rukia thought. 'This bastard's improved his skills _again_. I couldn't stop him...or even move from this spot!'

Renji walked a little towards Ishida. "Okay, then..." He lifted his blade, "Guess I'll finish the job. Before you die, remember this well...'Abarai Renji'...It's the name of the man who killed you."

"Wait!" Rukia screamed.

"Pleased to meet ya!" Renji yelled as he swung down the blade. As the blade was about to hit Ishida, another blade intercepted the attack. Instead the other attack headed towards Renji. Renji jumped to avoid the hit. Once he landed, he shouted out, "Who the hell're you?!"

There stood Ichigo, in his mighty glory. "Kurosaki Ichigo...the man who's going to take you down. Nice to meet ya."

Everyone was shocked to see him, especially Rukia after she told him not to come.

"Shinigami clothes?! What squad are you with?" Renji questioned. Ichigo moved his Zanpakutou so that it would rest against his right shoulder. "What the HELL is up with that _huge ass_ Zanpakutou?!"

"What? So this is big then, huh?" Ichigo said. "I _thought_ it was pretty big compared to Rukia's. Anyway, 'til now, I didn't have anyone, besides Tsukiko, to compare with."

Renji then spoke, "The hugeness of one's Zanpakutou is the hugeness of their spirit power...How could such a kid have such a huge ass sword..."

'Ichigo, you fool! Why did you come?!' Rukia said in her head.

"So that's it." Rukia looked towards Renji. "I get it. So _you're_ the human who got his powers from Rukia?!"

"Eh?"

Renji then jumped towards the orange haired Shinigami. The red head brought up his weapon, preparing his attack. He swung down his blade and once he made his attack, Ichigo brought up his weapon to defend.

"Come on! Come on! Come on!" Renji screamed as he swung his weapon, yet again. All that Ichigo was able to do was block. "What's wrong?! Is your big ass sword just for show?! Eh?!"

'Damnit! What the hell's with this guy?!' Ichigo thought as he kept on blocking. Ichigo managed to push back Renji's blade and attack with his own sword. Unfortunately for Ichigo, he had missed for Renji had jumped in order to evade his attack.

Renji was up in the air, now looking downwards towards Ichigo. Rukia was taken aback while Byakuya remained emotionless. Renji swung down his blade and attacked. Ichigo was hit. He went down to his knees as blood escaped from his right shoulder. He moved his left arm to hold the wound. He began to feel the pain.

"Ichigo!" Rukia screamed out to him. She began to run towards him, when she was stopped. Ishida held onto her left leg to stop her from going. Rukia looked down at him as he spoke to her in a weak voice.

"Don't..."

"Ishida." Rukia looked back to what was happening.

"It's over." Renji said. Ichigo looked behind him as the red head continued. "You'll die and the powers will go back to Rukia. Then...Rukia will die in Soul Society." The lights around them fluttered off.

"But, man! You're one dumb shit. Rukia went to the trouble of leaving by herself to keep you out of it. All you had to do was sit quietly at home...but instead you came after her. Did you think you could do _anything at all_? You're just an overnight Shinigami. You couldn't put _once scratch_ on us real ones."

Suddenly, Ichigo swung his blade at Renji. A flash of white followed the blade and then suddenly disappeared. Renji was now sporting a new cut on his chin.

"Oh, my bad. Sorry to interrupt you..." Ichigo said, "but you were so wide open, my hand just moved on its own. Tell me the rest." He mocked him. "What was that about 'one scratch'?"

Renji's thumb touched where the scratch was at. "You piece of shit..." Renji faced Ichigo with an angered look, reading himself when a voice rang out.

"You relaxed too much, Renji." Renji looked back at Byakuya. The man had finally spoken.

"Kuchiki-taicho!"

"That child 'Kurosaki Ichigo'...I thought I had seen his face before. The other day, we had a repot from the Secret Mobile Corps..." Rukia looked towards he brother as she kneeled next to Ishida. "that he inflicted a sword wound on a Menos Grande...and sent it back to Hueco Mundo."

Renji laughed and Ichigo just looked at him, confused. "I can't take it. The quality of the S.M.C.'s been slidin' lately." He pointed to Ichigo. "_This kid_...wounded a _Menos Grande_?! I couldn't believe that story even if I _wanted_ to! I mean, just look, Taicho. His Zanpakutou...it's huge, but otherwise it's a total disgrace! It's obvious he can't control his spirit energy. What's you Zanpakutou's name?" He asked.

"Huh? Name?"

"Did you even _ask_?"

"You mean ask Rukia? You _name_ every one o' these things?"

"I knew it." Renji stated. "You can't even ask your own Zanpakutou its name. A bastard like that...trying to fight me as an _equal_ is...TWO THOUSAND YEARS TOO EARLY!!"

He lifted his hand over his Zanpakutou and slid it downwards towards the end of it. It had changed. It now had smaller blades attached to it, like fangs and a large one at the very top. The blade was now black and sliver. Ichigo stared in amazement.

"Howl, Zabimaru! Look ahead. What's in front of you..." Renji jumped to the air and then descended towards Ichigo. "IS YOUR FOOD!!"

Ichigo was now shocked and prepared to defend himself. Zabimaru came in contact with Ichigo's Zanpakutou but the next move surprised him. Renji's weapon had elongated, hitting Ichigo right on his left shoulder.

Ichigo dropped his weapon as Renji's still remained on Ichigo's shoulder. Renji laughed and pulled back the blade slowly, cutting Ichigo more and more.

"It's _over_, you little shit. You're going to lose to me, Abarai Renji, and die here!"

Rukia looked towards the scene and was scared. Fear showed through her eyes as she saw the attack towards Ichigo. Renji and his elongated Zabimaru watched Ichigo as more blood rushed out of his body. Byakuya was still watching the events, not taking any action whatsoever. Ichigo then fell to the ground.

"Ah!" Tsukiko lifted her right hand over her heart as she felt a pang. Her heart was beating rapidly and she had no idea why.

'What is wrong?! Something _has_ happened. I can somewhat feel it! Ichigo!!'

She got up once again and ran to open the door. When she slid it open this time, Urahara was now facing her. Her face showed that she was in pain and that she was scared.

"Please _let me go_! _They_ are in trouble. _PLEASE_!!" She cried as she began to pound on his chest. She knew someone got hurt and something worse was going to happen soon. Her gut was telling her this. She didn't care anymore about the promise that she made. Tsukiko began to cry, not wanting another close person to her die. All that Urahara was able to do for the moment was hug her and let her tears fall down.

"I'm sorry. But I can't let you go." Was all that Urahara had told her, before pushing her back into the room and closing the door. He used a Kido spell to keep her locked in.

"LET ME OUT!!" Tsukiko pounded at the door.

"Jinta. Ururu. Yoruichi." Urahara called out. The two children and the black cat walked to him and waited for what he had to say. "Watch her. Make sure she doesn't get out. Until I tell you so." All three of them nodded and then Urahara left to make preparations.


	17. Tears, Blood and Hope

**Thanks for the review, SaiyukiSucker. It made me laugh when I read it. **

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Chapter 17: Tears, Blood and Hope

Tsukiko was curled up in a ball. Dried tears stained her face as Luna trued to comfort her.

"Tsukiko, he did this for a reason. He wants to protect you; it's something someone really close to you who loves you will do." Luna told her as she used her little paws to remove fresh tears that were coming down the teens face.

"But Luna, you have to understand that the person I _want_ to protect right now is Ichigo. He has been there when I needed it and now, what am I to do? I'm locked up in this room with no where to escape."

Luna sighed, "He is going to let you out soon. Just when the time is right."

"I hope he does."

Ichigo was still one the ground, blood kept spilling from his wounds.

"Sorry 'bout that, kid." Renji told him as he twirled his Zanpakutou around. "That's what they call the _power gap_. A Zanpakutou changes its size and shape based on its owner's spirit power. And _this_ is the figure of _my_ spirit power.

"Alright, kid, it's about time for me to leave. The air here doesn't suit me."

'I hoped the first attack would show Ichigo the power gap...' Rukia thought as she watched the two. '...that way, he'd know he was no match and back down while his wounds were still shallow. That's what I was _hoping_ for...But of course, Ichigo wouldn't back down just for that. Truth be told, I knew that...'

"Here I come..." Renji prepared himself for his next and perhaps final assault.

'Can you still move, Ichigo? Run away! Quickly, I beg you!'

"Nothing to say?"

Rukia began to move forwards as Renji said this. Renji ran towards Ichigo. Just as he brought his blade up towards the sky, Rukia jumped at him. She pulled his arm back to prevent the attack.

"What're you doin' Rukia!?" Renji questioned her as she now was on his back, preventing him to fight. "Dammit, let go of me! You tryin' to get yourself into deeper shit?! Let me go, you dumb shit!"

"Run, Ichigo!!" She screamed at him. "Stand! Get up and run away!! Ichigo!!"

Ichigo began to move. His first movement was to grab his Zanpakutou.

"What the hell...You still have the strength to move?" Renji finally had managed to push Rukia off of his back. "Just what the doctor ordered. I was thinkin' what a drag it'd be just finishing off someone who is almost dead anyway."

Ichigo gripped his blade and finally stood up.

"Alrighty then, let's have one last down and dirty bloodletting before you die." Renji grinned as he spoke.

"Ichigo, if you can stand, run away! You have to run, Ichigo!! Ichi-"

"What's wrong?" the red head asked, "If you're not going, then I'll go first." Renji once again prepared his blade to attack. He waited for Ichigo to do something.

Ichigo's breathing became louder and louder. The two strands at the end of Ichigo's Zanpakutou had ripped. Ichigo's spirit energy had been released once again.

'What's with this increase in spirit force...' Renji thought as he blocked the wind that was coming towards him. Renji's face went from confusion to now taken aback. Ichigo ran towards his and struck him with his blade. Renji was now bleeding from his left shoulder. Ichigo landed right behind him, and readied himself again.

"What the hell?!" Renji yelled out.

Ichigo ran towards him with such a speed that he looked blurry to Renji. Renji barely managed to block Ichigo's attack, but the force sent him flying back a bit. Renji's hand landed on the rail that was next to him to slow himself down.

Apparently, Ichigo's attack did strike Renji, whose weird looking glasses were now broken in half and blood was seeping out from his forehead.

'What the hell is he...A second ago he was about to die! Where the hell did all this power come from?!'

Ichigo looked towards Renji, a grin now on his face.

"What's wrong?!" Ichigo smirked as he asked Renji. "Your movements have gotten hella slow all of a sudden!"

'Shut the hell up, _you've_ gotten _faster_.'

"I dunno what this is, but it feels _good_. Right now, my wounds don't hurt...and I'm not even a _tiny bit_ worried about losing to you!" Ichigo boasted.

'You bastard!' Renji got up and shouted out, "Howl, Zabimaru!"

Zabimaru extended towards Ichigo, and Ichigo smirked for he easily dodged the attack. Every time Renji sent his Zanpakutou towards Ichigo, he would simply move out of the way. When another attack was sent his way, Ichigo merely jumped and blocked the attack. Zabimaru had came back to Renji as he prepared himself to block.

Ichigo ran towards Renji and jumped over the rail to attack him. Renji jumped out of the way to dodge the attack.

'Renji is being pushed back on his heels...Ichigo...'

Kuchiki Byakuya simply stood there watching his partner fight. Ichigo once again ran towards Renji and swing his weapon downwards. Renji just dodged once again.

"You're good at scurrying around like a rat, ain't ya?!" Ichigo shouted at Renji as more spirit energy released itself out of his body.

'What's going on?! How high is his spirit power gonna go?!' Renji thought as his face showed how shocked he currently is.

"But that's enough of that!" Ichigo shouted. He jumped from where he was at.

Renji wasn't able to move at all. 'So heavy...I won't make it!'

Just when Ichigo was about to kill Renji, a flash of light appeared. Ichigo's once long Zanpakutou was now broken.

'W-What?! My Zanpakutou...No, he didn't do anything...' Ichigo thought while looking at Renji. He turned around to face the other Shinigami. 'Him? Impossible, from that distance, he couldn't possibly do anything.' But there, Kuchiku Byakuya held the rest of Ichigo's blade. Byakuya raised it upwards so that Ichigo could see and he then simply dropped it towards the ground. 'He's coming.'

Byakuya moved his left hand to grab the hilt of his own Zanpakutou. As soon as he grabbed it, Ichigo prepared to block. But the next move came so quickly. Once Ichigo was ready, Byakuya was already next to him. Rukia and Renji were both surprised. Byakuya was a few feet away from Ichigo now. Ichigo looked down towards his chest and there, blood sprayed out of his body.

'What the hell...Did I just get beat? Was I stabbed from behind? Was it from the front...I don't know...It hurts...' Ichigo thought as he was slowly falling to the ground.

"How slow..." Byakuya finally said. "Even in defeat."

Rukia screamed out, "Byakuya-nii-sama!!"

Ichigo had finally fallen to the ground, after being struck a second time. This time, it was from behind.

'Been a long time since I saw that...He really is...incredible.' Renji thought as he looked at the man in front of him. 'Even straining my eye, I could only follow the second attack. In the first attack, I couldn't even see when he drew _or_ sheathed his sword. If even _I'm_ in this condition...that _kid_ probably has no idea what even happened.

'Even so...what was the deal with his monstrous spirit power...'

"Something wrong, Renji?" Byakuya's voice had caught Renji's attention.

"No, sir...You didn't need to step in for such a weakling, Taicho. I could have finished him myself."

"Do not say that." Byakuya told him as he closed his eyes. "Even _my_ skills will rust if I simply stand and watch all the time."

'That's not it, he's...I'll...'

"Ichigo!" Rukia screamed. Rukia had jumped over the rail and now headed towards where he was currently lying at. "Ichigo!!"

"Forget it!" Renji stood and ran to stop Rukia. He grabbed her by the neck and slammed her against a pole.

"Let go, Renji! Ichigo's-"

"'The hell are you talking about!! Look closer! That brat is dead!"

Rukia looked toward where her brother was at. Next to him on the floor was Ichigo.

"Don't you get it!? Just _touching_ him right now will add twenty years to your sentence! What the hell is there to worsen your crimes for a _dead guy_?!"

Rukia looked down in defeat, yet she still spoke. "_I_ involved Ichigo...It's MY fault he died!! What's wrong with me running over to him?!"

Renji was taken back. He never expected Rukia to say that to him. Blood was quickly seeping out of Ichigo's body.

"Even though your crimes may worsen...you cannot bear not to go to him?" Her brother asked her. "...to this _child's_ side?"

"Nii-sama..."

"I understand, Rukia. I see. This child _does_ closely resemble him."

Thunder rumbled from a distance. Tsukiko sat there with her knees against her chest and her head resting on her knees. Something terrible happened and she was not there to stop it. Guilt was in her head as she simply just remained there, not moving a muscle.

The door in front of her had suddenly slid open. Urahara had appeared and walked towards her, Yoruichi walked along side him. She kept her eyes away from the man in front of her, not wanting to see him for what he had done to her.

"Tsukiko..." he whispered to her, "It's time."

She moved her eyes now to look at him. He could clearly see her red eyes still watery and red for all the tears she spilt.

"Time for what?" She whispered back to him.

Urahara smiled and told her in a small sentence, "To save him."

Tsukiko shot her head up and looked at him. She looked to see if there was any sort of lie coming from his eyes. But there was none; the truth was only there. Urahara gave her his hand to help her stand up. She at first hesitated, but then took it and lifted herself off the ground.

"Time to go Shinigami style, eh, Tsukiko-chan?"

She smiled at him and grabbed Luna in a quick speed, yanking her off the floor.

"Hey-" Luna's voice was cut short when Tsukiko grabbed the pill and swallowed it in her mouth. As soon as she swallowed the pill, Tsukiko's soul came out. She was now in her Shinigami attire and Kuro Maho was in its sheath behind her back now.

"Let's go!"

Urahara with Yoruichi on his shoulder, Tessai, and Tsukiko ran out of the shop. Rain was now pouring down on them. Urahara was leading as the other two were behind him, forming a triangle. She couldn't wait any longer. Her patience was extremely low, after what Urahara had done to her.

She ran past the two, leaving them behind. Her breathing was harder now, for she was running to her fullest.

"Tsukiko!" Tessai screamed out. She ignored his voice and kept on running. "Manager, shouldn't you-"

"No." Urahara interrupted him. "Let her go. I think I have caused her enough trouble for now."

Tsukiko was getting close now. She could feel Ichigo's and Rukia's spirit energy and surprisingly she also felt Ishida's. But there was something wrong. There were also two other spirit energies and Tsukiko didn't know who they belonged to. Not only that, but Ichigo's energy was getting weaker and weaker by the second.

'Ichigo, you better not be dying!' She thought as she began to pick up her pace more. 'There! It's here!'

She ran to where they were at but as soon as she got close, she stopped. Ishida was on the sidewalk, face down to the ground and there was Ichigo, lying on blood. His _own_ blood. Rukia was walking into some sort of door.

"RUKIA!!" She screamed.

Rukia heard the voice and turned around before the door closed behind her. She looked at Tsukiko and gave her an apologetic look. And then, the door closed and disappeared.

New tears were slowly falling from her eyes again. Her black hair, now fully soaked. She looked at Ichigo.

"Ichigo!!" She immediately ran towards him. Once she was next to him, she got on her knees and turned Ichigo around so that she could look at his face.

"Ichigo..." she sobbed, "Please, don't die. Don't die!"

His eyes looked directly at her and saw the tears that she was shedding for him.

'Don't cry, Tsukiko...It's cold.'

A shadow loomed over the two. Tsukiko looked up and saw Urahara. An umbrella was covering him and now the two teens. Ichigo had finally passed out.

"Tsukiko, grab him." Urahara told her. She nodded her head and did what she was told.

"Now Tsukiko listen to me carefully." Now Yoruichi was speaking to the girl.

'Have I finally lost it?' Tsukiko questioned in her head as soon as she heard the cat talk.

"Concentrate on your spirit energy and send it to your feet. This will help you move faster. It is called Shunpo (Flash Step). Now do it so that you may help the boy faster."

Tsukiko only nodded and closed her eyes. 'Concentrate.' She told herself. She felt her energy moving down to her feet. As soon as she got a sufficient amount of it, she ran. She was now moving faster than she normally did.

'I did it!'

With every step she took, she didn't even feel herself touch the floor. In a matter of less than two minutes, she was halfway to her Godfather's shop, but at some point, some of her spirit energy began to fade from her feet.

'No! I thought I had it.'

She managed to make it on time to the shop and behind her Urahara appeared with Yoruichi on his shoulder and Tessai, who came last.

"No time to waste, let's go." Urahara said, and then their work began.

Tsukiko was still in her Shinigami-self, but now she sat in front of Yoruichi.

"Since when can _you_ talk?" She asked the black cat.

The cat just looked at her and said, "I have always been able to talk."

The teenage girl just stared at the black cat. 'Well, if Hollows and Shinigamis exist, then I know I can't be imagining this.'

"So about that Shunpo move, can you possible help me with that right now?"

The cat looked at her, deciding whether or not to help her out. Tsukiko crossed her fingers, hoping that the answer would be yes so that it can help her with controlling spirit energy.

"Only on _one_ condition." Yoruichi told her.

"Anything, you name it!"

"Can you bring me a bowl of milk?" Tsukiko just anime fell.

After the bowl of milk, her training began. Yoruichi would tell her how much would be a good amount of spirit energy would be needed to go extremely fast and far. The cat even explained to her why she did not do well the first time she had done it when bringing Ichigo to the shop.

Her problem was that she did not use much of her energy. She was pretty close, but it was still not enough to do it properly. Yoruichi demonstrated a couple of times the proper way to do it. Tsukiko stared amazingly at the cat. How was it that an animal was able to accomplish such a task? But, there was something _human_ about the cat as well.

In a matter of two and a half hours, Tsukiko managed to get it right. She may not be able to go far, but she was now able to move faster.

"Good job." Yoruichi told her. "You now know the basics of Shunpo. Now all you need to do is continue practicing it and then you shall be able to move even faster and go further distanced.

"Than-" A screamed interrupted her voice. "Ichigo!" She used her new technique and ran towards her room. Tsukiko found Luna there sleeping and woke her up, just to get into her body.

"Thanks Luna!" She said as she now left her room to go to Ichigo's. Once Tsukiko was in front of the door, she slid it open. She now had a disturbed look on her face. Tessai was in the same futon as Ichigo, and was literally on top of him.

"Owner! Kurosaki-dono has awakened. Owner!" Tessai shouted out.

"Hey, I've seen you before! You're one o' Hat-and-Clog's people! Why the hell are you in my bed?! Get OUT!" Ichigo kicked him off. Suddenly, Ichigo moved his right hand over his left shoulder feeling pain.

'What?! I'm not dead...Why not...Wait, now that I look at it, this ain't my house. Where am I?' he thought while looking around.

"Ichigo, you shouldn't be moving!" Tsukiko said as she walked into the room now.

He looked at her and said, "Tsukiko!"

She walked towards him and got on her knees. She immediately gave him a hug.

"I was so worried about you!" She told him. "I thought you were going to die."

Ichigo hugged her back and said, "I'm here aren't I. And I thought I was going to die. But now here I am."

"Come now, that's not good for you, Kurosaki-san." Ichigo let go of the hug and looked towards the door. "Your wounds still haven't closed yet." Urahara told him. "If you move too much, you'll die." His fan was now open, covering the lower part of his face.

"Aw come on, let me hug him. I should, _we_ should. After all, you still owe me for locking me in my room."

Ichigo looked at her confused. Tsukiko faced him and gave him a look that said, 'I'll tell you later.'

"Hat-and-Clogs...Oh, so this is _your_ house..."

"Exactly!" He said as he closed his fan.

"You're the one who saved me?" He said in a sad tone.

"Oh? Not the response I was expecting. It almost sounds like you didn't want to be saved."

Tsukiko looked at him confused as Ichigo remained silent. 'Why did he not want to be saved,' she thought in her head. 'He could have really died if we didn't save him.'

"Oh, yeah." He abruptly said, "Ishida was lying nearby too. Where is he? Is he here too?"

"No, he went home." Tsukiko answered for him. "Even though he did lose a lot of blood, the wounds on him were not as serious."

"Even if we'd left him there, he wouldn't have died for at least two days. So I was able to treat most of his wounds on the spot. When he left, he was worried about you, Kurosaki-san." Urahara told him.

"Ishida worried about _me_? No way..."

Tsukiko was also surprised that the Quincy was worried about Ichigo.

"I _did_ ask him to rest here as well, but..." Urahara then told him what Ishida had said. That it was only him who can save Rukia.

"Only me, huh? What am _I supposed to do_? Rukia's gone back to Soul Society!!" He shouted the last part. "How am I supposed to go after her?! How am I supposed to save her?! I _can't_. I _CAN'T_!!"

Then a hand slapped his face. Ichigo was shocked. Tsukiko's hand had struck him and now she was looking at him, angry.

"What are you saying?! You really think that there's no way?! Are you just going to give up?! There is always a way!! There _is_ a way to get into Soul Society!!" She yelled at him as she stood up.

He looked up at her surprised at what she had told him. He asked, "Is there? What do I do?!" Ichigo got up and questioned, "How do I get there?! Tell me please!"

"Of course, I'll tell you." Urahara said. "But I have one condition."

"Condition?"

"Yes. For ten days starting now, study fighting with me and Tsukiko-chan."

"St-St-What the hell? You're telling me to train? We ain't got time for that! We don't know _when_ Rukia'll be killed over there! Forget that, we gotta get to Soul Society ASAP and save Ru-"

"You just don't get it." Urahara said as he used the end of his cane to push Ichigo down to the ground. Urahara was now in front of Ichigo, his cane pointing down at Ichigo. Tsukiko simply stood there, watching as he explained.

"I'm trying to tell you...the way you are now, you'll die there." The cane glowed, making it look as if it was a sword, only inches away from Ichigo. The glowing then stopped.

"Can you win a fight with them the way you are? Tsukiko has a better chance of winning than you do right now. This time, I...went ahead and _let_ you fight them." He looked towards Tsukiko and said to her, "That is why I locked you inside your room."

He looked back at Ichigo and continued. "And that's because I thought that would be faster than telling you...that with your current strength, you wouldn't be the least useful in Soul Society.

"You're weak. When a weakling enters enemy territory...what do they call it Tsukiko-chan?"

Tsukiko looked down to the ground and said, "They call it 'suicide'." After Tsukiko spoke, she took a seat to the ground. Yoruichi walked and sat next to her, watching as Urahara continued.

"Right. _To save Kuchiki-san_? You gotta grow up. Don't use other people as an excuse to die." This surely caught Ichigo's attention.

Urahara stood up and looked at Ichigo. He began to walk around Ichigo as he continued speaking. "Soul Society customarily...takes a one-month grace period before execution of death row prisoners. That should be the same time for Kuchiki-san."

"Execute?!" Ichigo sat up as soon as he had spoken.

"The process is different than how humans die, though. Starting now, ten days to bully you. Seven days to open the gate to Soul Society. Then thirteen days once we reach Soul Society. Plenty of time."

"In ten days, can I...get stronger?"

"Of course...if you desire from the bottom of your heart to save Kuchiki-san. The power of love is stronger than steel."

Once Urahara said this, Tsukiko's heart began to pound rapidly. She looked away from her Godfather and thought to herself, 'the power of love, huh? Am I doing this because I am starting to _love_ Ichigo?'

"Leave your doubts and hesitation out in the gutter. For then days, can you handle a life-or-death situation with me?" Urahara looked at Ichigo.

Ichigo brought his hand up and rubbed his head. He brought it down and looked directly at Urahara. "You have to _ask_?"

"Very well. I say you get some rest now. You too, Tsukiko, since the dance recital is today now."

She looked up at Urahara and said, "I almost forgot!"

"Well, I am going to bed. Come along Yoruichi-san." He walked out of Ichigo's room and Yoruichi followed. He turned off the light and closed the door behind him and now, Ichigo and Tsukiko were alone.

"I can't believe I almost forgot." She said as she crawled to sit next to the orange haired boy.

"Me too. But with all of this going on, we were bound to forget." Ichigo told her.

The two remained silent for a while. Many thoughts were running through their heads right now. Ichigo finally spoke.

"So he locked you inside your room?"

"Yes. I guess he didn't want me to interfere with what was going on with you." She balled her fist and said, "I was in pain. Not being able to help you. Not being able to fight. I was crying...he made me cry."

Ichigo hugged her and said, "I'm kinda glad he didn't let you go. I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

"I guess so. But still, I _wanted_ to protect you." He let go of her and smiled.

"I guess we both wanted to protect each other huh?" He laughed as she smiled. He then asked, "Are you going to come to Soul Society with me?"

Tsukiko grinned and said, "I wouldn't miss it for the world! It should be fun ya know." She winked at him.

A blush appeared on Ichigo's face as he looked down to the floor. "Thanks, for everything."

She smiled and hugged him. "No problem. After all, you are my bestest buddy. Well besides Hitomi that is."

Ichigo laughed and hugged her back. "So am I going to get my dinner tonight since I totally won a few days ago?"

She punched him lightly and said, "Way to ruin the moment." She laughed. "Yes, I am going to make you your damn dinner tonight. Jeez." She looked at the clock that was next to the door. It read six 'o eight.

"We should go to sleep. I have to be at the auditorium at five and I do want to get some sleep."

Ichigo laughed and said, "Alright, go sleep then."

"Ok." Tsukiko made herself comfy on Ichigo's futon.

"Hey! I meant go to sleep in your own room."

"C'mon Ichigo, please let me stay here for tonight?" She gave him the puppy eye look. Ichigo tried to resist, but was defeated.

"Fine you can stay. But only for tonight."

"Ok for tonight and for any other nights that I give you puppy eyes."

"Yeah, yeah and for any other nights you give me the puppy eyes look." It took him a minute before he realized what he had said. "Wait a minute!! Aw man, you win." He gave up and lied down next to Tsukiko.

Tsukiko turned to face Ichigo and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Night Ichigo." She then turned to face her side of the wall.

Ichigo blushed. He moved his hand to where she had kissed him and smiled. "Night Tsukiko."

Both teens were now falling asleep. But in their heads, they began to think of what was going to happen in the future. Tsukiko's eyes were half closed while Ichigo's was wide open. Tsukiko sighed and moved her body so that it would face Ichigo. She moved closer to him and placed her head on his bandaged chest. He stiffened for a second but then relaxed.

She had finally fallen asleep. Ichigo moved his left arm and brought her closer to him. She smiled and snuggled into the closeness of their bodies. He chuckled lightly and kissed her forehead. "Sweet dreams, Tsukiko." And he finally fell asleep.


	18. Dance Recital and a Fun Night

**Hooray for a new chapter, lol. I want to thank SaiyukiSucker, Saphire-Darkness, and Black-HunterXX for their wonderful reviews. Thanks! **

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Chapter 18: Dance Recital and a Fun Night

Tsukiko was running through a field and beyond that field, was a forest. Her white dress flowed along with the wind as she ran towards the forest. She didn't know why she was running, but she felt that someone was calling her to go there. She looked around her. Nothing. Nothing but grass surrounded her. She felt lost.

"Tsukiko..." a soft voice rang.

Her red eyes tried searching for the voice. She ran further. Her white flat shoes were beginning to get dirty, along with the bottom of her dress. Tsukiko ran closer to the forest and there, she saw something.

A woman, who was clad in a black gown, looked straight towards Tsukiko. She smiled and motioned for Tsukiko to come closer. Tsukiko just stared, but then followed the hand gesture.

"Kuro Maho." Tsukiko said as soon as she reached her. The woman simply nodded her head. Now Tsukiko had a much better glimpse of her.

Her hair was long and went all the way to her lower back. It was a dark brown, a dark brown that could fool a person to think that it was black. Her eyes, purple and mystifying. One her left cheek, there were two stripes and where the same color as her eyes. Her outfit looked extremely different from far away.

Her dress was black, long sleeved, cut from the shoulders and reached a little above her knees. A corset was around her waist making it show off curves and was the same color as her eyes. And lastly, her feet were adorned with purple boots that had black buckles on them and reached a little below her knees.

Kuro Maho lifted her hand a gestured it towards Tsukiko. She could clearly see a tattoo embedded on her wrist. A crescent moon and a star. Tsukiko gave the woman her hand. She smiled at Tsukiko and told her,

"Don't be afraid about the future. My magician-like abilities will help you, for they are about to be a part of you soon. Now, it's time for you to wake up."

A flash of light suddenly appeared. Tsukiko squinted her eyes and moved her head to look at the source. Giggling was also heard. She groaned and buried her head on her hard pillow.

"Look Yoruichi. How cute!"

Her eyes snapped open and she got up quickly. Her pillow groaned, but remained there not moving. Before Tsukiko were Urahara and Yoruichi and in Urahara's hands was the source of the flash. A camera.

"Get out." She darkly said. Her eyes were covered by her hair, making her look scarier than imaginable right now.

"N-No problem." Urahara managed to stutter out as he grabbed Yoruichi and ran out of the room.

Tsukiko sighed and looked at the clock. One forty-six was time. She rubbed her head and looked to where she was sleeping at. There lied Ichigo who was still asleep. She smiled at the sight and kissed his forehead. Ichigo mumbled something and moved to face his side of the wall. Again Tsukiko smiled and got out of the bed. She walked towards the door and looked one last time at Ichigo. She looked back and then walked towards her room and got dressed.

Ichigo groaned and opened his eyes. Light blinded him for a second but it went away. He looked towards his left and found it empty. He was confused.

'Didn't Tsukiko sleep with me?' The very thought made him blush.

"Hey."

He looked towards the door and there was Tsukiko. She was wearing knee high black pants and had a purple shit that a yellow crescent moon and a white star. Her feet were covered by white socks.

"Hey. What time is it?" He asked her.

She grabbed her cell phone from her pocket, forgetting about the clock that was in the room.

"It's two fifteen. Come on, lunch has been served." With that, she left him to his privacy to get ready.

Lunch was a bit awkward and it was all thanks to Urahara. He wouldn't stop making comments about the funny site that he found. Tsukiko just got annoyed and smacked him in the back of his head, making it hit the table as well.

In half an hour, the two left Urahara's. It was quiet as they walked and once Ichigo was in front of his house, he said bye to Tsukiko and went in. Tsukiko waved him off and continued her journey home.

Her dream was still fresh in her mind. She hoped that it would have gone further if it wasn't for the interruption that Urahara had done. Her Zanpakutou, Kuro Maho, had came to her and said not to worry. Was there something to really worry about that made her have this dream? She ignored the thought and went inside to get ready.

After a shower, Tsukiko began to look through her closet to find something to wear for tonight. In the end, she managed to find black skinny leg jeans and a red dressy shirt to wear. She put the clothes on and began to fix her hair. She wasn't able to do much with it, so she just combed it straight.

She began to put her makeup on. She wasn't much of big fan of wearing makeup but only wore what was a simple task. She grabbed her black eyeliner and put that on. Lastly she grabbed her cherry flavored chapstick and put some on her lips. She was finally ready.

Tsukiko went to the living room and grabbed her black tote bag. She grabbed her keys, her cell phone, her small makeup bag that held her tiny essentials and lastly her iPod.

"Luna! Are you coming with?" She shouted.

"No I am fine. I'm just gonna sleep." The mod soul cried out.

"Lazy bum."

She went to grab her black flats and put them on. She was finally ready. With a quick glance at her clock, it read four fifteen. Just enough time for her to walk in a normal pace.

"Bye Luna! I'll be back at nine and Ichigo is going to come over as well!"

No reply came back. Tsukiko just sweat dropped and left the house. She grabbed her iPod out of the bag and put the head phones on top of her head. Every earphone that she owned would always get messed up around every three to four months. But this time, she decided to get headphones. She placed on top of her head and heard her music.

She was barely passing the Kurosaki Clinic when a voice shouted her name out.

"Tsukiko-sensei!" Yuzu came running at her, stopping her. "Tsukiko-sensei, would you like a ride to the auditorium? My otou-san is going to drop me off and then come back for Karin-nee and Ichi-nii."

Tsukiko smiled at the girl and said, "Yeah that would be nice. Thanks Yuzu!"

Tsukiko walked back to her house hand in hand. She always like Yuzu and would even love to have her as a sister. She even wanted Karin as her sister as well. They both were just awesome to her.

"Otou-san! Tsukiko-sensei is coming with us!" She shouted to her father as he readied the car.

"Alright! The more the merrier!" Isshin said as he held his thumb up.

The car right was pretty interesting. Isshin was tearfully happy, thanking Tsukiko for all of the things she had done for Yuzu. For every comment he made, a Tsukiko kept getting more sweat drop marks in the back of her head. She simply would nod and say that she was glad to be of service.

"I'll be back around six forty and get good seats! Good luck!" Isshin waved as he drove back to his home.

"Bye! And thanks!" The two girls said as they waved back.

Tsukiko looked at Yuzu, smiled and said, "Ready to go inside?" Yuzu nodded and the two went into the auditorium.

For an hour and a half, Tsukiko and any other sensei had their students review the dance moves and get ready. Tsukiko was currently in their dressing room, helping the girls and the boys into their costumes.

"Alright kids, come gather around me." She told them.

All the children that Tsukiko taught came up to her. And with that, she began her speech.

"First of all, I just want to say that I am really glad that I was able to work with all of you. You all are special, talented, and wonderful kids. You guys make me so proud." Tears were beginning to form in her eyes. "I'm sure that you guys know that I am no longer am going to be working at the studio. And I am going to miss being there."

Tears were now falling from her eyes. One of her students, Kyou, handed her a tissue to wipe away her tears.

"Thank you, Kyou," she told him. "Just know that I love you all and am extremely proud of you. You guys have changed my life and I hope that I have changed yours in some shape or way. Now let's get ready and give them an awesome show!"

"YEAH!" All the children shouted out and tackled Tsukiko to the ground. They all gave her a group hug and Tsukiko hugged them all. She told them to get ready and she herself went to go and fix herself. She put her eyeliner on once again and now, it was time for the show.

Tsukiko walked up the stage along with the other instructors. As Kazumi spoke to the microphone, introducing all of the instructors, Tsukiko looked for the Kurosaki's, but didn't have to look far. There in the front row were the three of them.

Isshin was there, dressed in black dress pants along with a white button up shirt, and dress shoes. His face showed excitement and that he was proud, seeing his daughter dance must have been a big deal since all he mostly seen Yuzu do was do housework. And he knew that if his wife, Masaki, was here, she would have been so happy.

Karin sat next to him. She wore her normal type of attire. Black shorts and a blue and yellow shirt were on her and her sneakers. She was smiling, showing that she was also excited to see something that her twin loved to do, as mush as she, herself, loved to play soccer.

And next to her, Ichigo was there smiling. He wore dark blue jeans and had a black button up shirt. He wore his own pair of chucks as well. Tsukiko knew that he was proud of his sister as well for doing something that she believed in, like how Ichigo is now proud that he will be able to save a life.

Tsukiko's eyes captured Ichigo's and they both smiled at one another. As soon as a blush began to creep up on her face, she looked away and brought up her hand. She began to bite on her nails. This bad habit of hers way going to mess up her nails in the future, but she couldn't help it.

The show went off with a hitch. Everything came out according to plan. Even though there were some little mistakes, like one of the girls coming out in the wrong costume and messing up a move, Tsukiko didn't care. She loved that there were some flaws in this event. Nothing is meant to be perfect. All she wanted was for the students to have fun.

At the end of the show, everyone and the instructors went up on stage to give the final bow. It went group by group. Once Tsukiko and her students went to take a bow, the Kurosaki's cheered the loudest. Tsukiko blushed. After their bow, the kids ran towards Tsukiko and tackled her again to a hug. She laughed and hugged them.

All the children got their belongings and went to their parents. The kids that Tsukiko worked with brought their parents to introduce them to her. Every one of them thanked her, being grateful that she did this. The last family to come up to her was the one and only, the Kurosaki's.

"Tsukiko-sensei! I am going to miss having you as my sensei!!" Yuzu said as she hugged Tsukiko.

"Me too Yuzu. But you can always come and visit me and I can still teach you." She told the girl.

"Really?" Tsukiko nodded. "Thank you! Oh and we got you something!" Yuzu motioned Ichigo forward and there he held a beautiful bouquet of flowers. There were lilies, tulips, cherry blossoms, and roses.

Tsukiko was surprised. Ichigo walked up to her and handed the flowers. "Thank you." She said once they were in her arms. "They're really beautiful."

"Ichigo was the one who picked them out." Karin said as she nudged her brother. All Ichigo did was blush a light shade of pink. Tsukiko just giggled.

"Well, time for us to head home." Isshin told them all.

"Oh yeah that reminds me, I'm gonna go have dinner with Tsukiko dad." Ichigo told his father.

"Really, is it a date?" He smirked at the two blushing teens.

"N-No! I/I won/lost a bet!" The two teens yelled at him.

"Is that what they call it these days?"

They both just gave him a death glare. With the death glare of doom, Isshin remained silent. They all left the auditorium together. Isshin told them that he was going to drop them off at Tsukiko's house and take the girls home. When Tsukiko was about to go into the car, her name was called out.

"Tsukiko!" Kazumi ran towards her, glad to have caught her attention. Once she reached the girl, her breath was short. "Phew. Good thing you haven't left yet. I have something for you." In her hand, there was a box and an envelope. Kazumi gave her the package and hugged Tsukiko. "I'm gonna miss having you at the studio. You better come and visit."

"I will." Tsukiko said as she hugged back. The two let go and said goodbye to one another. Tsukiko got in the car and sat next to Ichigo.

During the drive to Tsukiko's house, Isshin and Yuzu were doing most of the talking in the front. In the back though, Ichigo, Tsukiko, and Karin were in their own little group, playing rock, paper, scissors.

"Alright, ready. Rock, paper, scissors!" Tsukiko had out scissors; Ichigo had rock; and Karin had rock as well.

"Ha we win, Tsukiko!" Ichigo shouted as he and Karin had high-five each other.

"Damn! Alright one more time!"

"Rock, paper, scissors!" All three had said at the same time. This time the results were unanimous. Tsukiko had rock, while Ichigo had scissors, while Karin had paper.

"Whoa, didn't expect that to happen." Karin stated.

"Uh huh." The two older teens said.

"Here's your stop, Tsukiko. Ichigo, are you going to sleepover as well?" Yuzu asked.

Isshin turned around and faced directly towards his son while shouting, "What?! Sleep over at a girl's house?! Ichigo are you sure she isn't your girlfriend?!"

"NO! We are just friends!"

"Don't worry, Isshin. If you want I'll have Ichigo home as soon as we are done eating." Tsukiko said while giving him an innocent smile.

"No, it's alright. He may sleepover, but in the morning you have to come straight home. Got it Ichigo?"

"Yeah I got it." He told his dad.

"Thanks for the ride! See you all soon." Tsukiko said as she got out of the car. She was holding her box-shape package in one hand, while in the other she had her tote bag and flowers.

"See ya in the morning." Ichigo told his family as he came out with a backpack.

The two teens waved as the Kurosaki's left back to their house. They walked up towards her house and then she just realized something. She had no way of being able to open the door.

"Uhh Ichigo, do you think you had hold the flowers for a second?" She asked him, while having a sweat mark on the back of her head.

"Yea, sure." She handed him the flowers and now having on free hand, she searched for her keys.

Once she had a grip on them, she opened her door and allowed the two of them to come in. The two teens removed their shoes and put on the slippers that were there, as if they were waiting for them.

"Luna, we're home!" She shouted towards her room. Yet there was no answer. "Damn lazy mutt. Well, make yourself at home Ichigo."

Tsukiko grabbed the flowers from his hands and went into her kitchen. She placed the flowers down gently on the table so that she would be able to search for a vase. She opened one of the cabinets and there she found one. It was like any other vase, crystal clear with carved patterns of flowers.

She filled the vase with water more than halfway when she heard Ichigo come in. Tsukiko removed the plastic covering that protected the flowers and placed in on the countertop. Then finally, she put the flowers inside the vase.

"Wow Ichigo. I never knew you had such good taste in picking flowers." Tsukiko smiled as she smelled the flowers.

"Yeah, well I had some help to be honest." He laughed as he rubbed his neck. "So what are we gonna eat tonight?"

"Hmm," she thought as she placed her index finger on her chin, now in her thinking mode, "how about some udon and perhaps some curry and rice?"

Ichigo laughed at her small gesture and told her, "That sounds good."

Tsukiko smiled and told him, "Alright, go and entertain yourself with my awesome DVDs or something. I'm gonna start cooking. Now get out." She pushed him out the doorway and readied herself to cook.

She was at peace when she was cooking. It made her only concentrate about the food and not about anything else. As time went on, their dinner was almost ready and prepared.

Ichigo was currently watching the movie Power Rangers when he smelled the food. He sniffed the scent and exhaled. He smiled, pressed pause on the movie and got up to head towards the kitchen.

He rested on the doorway as he watched Tsukiko cook. Her body posture showed how comfortable and relaxed she was. Yet as Ichigo watched her, he imagined something that perhaps no fifteen year old, soon to be sixteen, would possibly imagined.

He saw an older Tsukiko, doing what the current Tsukiko was doing, cooking. But the next image surprised him. A little boy, about the age of 3, ran towards her. The older Tsukiko stopped cooking and lifted the boy up and placed him on her waist. The boy shocked Ichigo. The child had the exact orange hair that he himself owned and red ruby eyes that Tsukiko owned.

"Ichigo. Hey Ichigo!" Ichigo was snapped out from his mind. Tsukiko was now in front of him, waving her hands in front of his face. "You dozed off for a while there. You ok?" She asked.

"Yeah I'm ok. Dinner ready yet?" He asked with the image was still in his head. Well the child at least.

"Yup! Come on let's eat!"

The two sat on the table and began to eat. Smiles and laughter came out of the two as they talked about the dance show. Ichigo was telling her how funny it was when he saw his father stand and scream out loud when he saw Yuzu on stage.

Tsukiko laughed. She remembered the scene clearly since she was next to the curtain, waiting for the routine to end so that she can help them get ready in their next costume.

"You really did an amazing job. I probably wouldn't have had any patience if I was to do something like that." Ichigo told her as he held his cup up to drink some soda.

"Thank you. It's weird that I have patience with children but with people my age and older, I have no patience with them. I dunno. I think it's because I love children."

The child flashed through his mind. Ichigo then asked her, "So does that mean you want to have you own children once when you get older?"

She nodded her head and said, "Of course. I love kids and when I see babies it makes me want to have one."

Ichigo smiled at her answer. She was being completely honest and she had on a smile whe she did answer. A fact that showed how she wants to have a family in the near future.

The two ended dinner and headed back to the living room. Ichigo restarted the movie so that Tsukiko would be able to watch it from the beginning.

"Man I love this movie. The Black Ranger, Adam, is a cutie." Tsukiko said aloud.

"Not even! If I was a girl, I'd probably go for Tommy." Ichigo said.

Tsukiko laughed at his answer. "Well Tommy is my third choice of being cute."

"So Adam is your first?"

"No, he is my second."

Ichigo was now confused. "Then who is the first?"

She smiled at him and said while pinching his cheeks, "You are my first, you little cutie."

Ichigo blushed and he knew that Tsukiko saw it. She smiled cutely at him, making him blush even more.

"Oh! It's almost 12. Wait right here Ichigo." Tsukiko told him as she got up from her seat and run up the stairs.

Curiosity hit Ichigo since she ran up quickly.

Tsukiko rummaged through her room, searching for the most important thing that she needed at this moment. It had taken her a long time to search for it and once she had found it, she was ecstatic.

"Ah ha! Here it is." She grabbed a blue wrapped box with a black bow adorned on top of it. Besides grabbing the gift, she also grabbed a camera. She ran down the stairs quietly, so Ichigo wouldn't see her. She managed to make it down the stairs and into the kitchen.

Tsukiko put the blue box on the table and she then opened her fridge. There lied a chocolate cake that she bought for Ichigo. She grabbed it and closed the fridge with her foot. She placed the cake next to the gift and searched for sixteen candles. Once she found them, she lit them up. She smiled and called out,

"Hey Ichigo, can you come to the kitchen for a second?"

"Yeah, sure."

Ichigo walked towards the kitchen and once he stepped in, he was surprised.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Ichigo, happy birthday to you." Tsukiko sang.

She smiled at his priceless face and took a picture. "Come on and blow your candles out." Tsukiko said as she waited for him to move.

Ichigo walked towards her. A smile was plastered on his face. He walked up right next to her and lowered his face to blow out the candles. Once he did, Tsukiko applauded. He faced her and said, "Thank you so much. I didn't realize that it was now my birthday."

"It's no problem. Oh and I got you something. It took me a while to find it, but I did." She told him as she handed him the gift.

Ichigo grabbed the gift and opened it. He stared at the gift in shock and looked at her. Inside was the complete collection of William Shakespeare's work. Ichigo had then glomped her with a huge hug.

"Thank you, thank you! I love it!" He said as he gave her a kiss on the cheek and then he released her.

Tsukiko blushed and said, "No problem. I knew you would like it. Now let's grab this cake and go eat it while watching Power Rangers!"

Ichigo simply smiled and nodded.

The two grabbed a fork and Tsukiko proceeded with grabbing the cake. It was a small one that was good for about four people. The perfect size for two people to eat together. Bite after bite, the cake was almost halfway devoured when Ichigo barely remembered something.

"Hey what was that package and envelope the Kazumi lady gave you?" He asked as he grabbed a forkful of cake and devoured it.

"I dunno. Let me go get it and we'll see." Tsukiko told him as she placed her fork down. She walked over to the kitchen where she last left the box and envelope there. She grabbed it and walked back to the living room. "Now let's see what's in here."

She first opened the envelope. There were two papers, but one was not just any paper. This was Tsukiko's last paycheck.

"Oh my god."

The check amount was two thousand dollars. She pulled out the small letter that was alongside the check and read it.

'Tsukiko, here is your last paycheck. I hope you put this money to good use. Take care and I hope to see you soon. Love, Kazumi. P.S.: Enjoy your gift!!'

With that said, she proceeded with opening the box. Once it was opened, Tsukiko looked down in shock. It was a photo album. She opened it and began flipping through the pages. Pictures of her dance career at the studio had filled the pages. There were even pictures when she was little. A tear escaped her eye as she saw the last picture.

It was her first recital ever. An eight year old Tsukiko was wearing a blue dress that had rhinestones adorned on it. Her hair was pulled back in a high ponytail and she was holding a bouquet of sunflowers. Next to her was her parents and Kai. Everyone was smiling.

"When was that taken?" Ichigo asked as he observed the last photo.

"It was taken on my first dance recital." She told him. "They were so excited to see me dance. Although Kai laughed when I almost fell." She said grimly at the last statement.

"When is your brother going to come and visit?" Ichigo asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Uhh, not sure. Knowing him, he might barge in at any minute. Eh oh well." She told him after swallowing a piece of cake.

He laughed. "For some strange bizarre reason, it reminds me of my dad."

Tsukiko laughed. She had an image of both her brother and Isshin standing next to one another. Their personalities were the same since they act immature at times, but are very caring.

"Your right." She looked at her clock and noticed the time. "Hmm it's one seventeen. Should we head to bed?"

"Yeah that sounds good. Uhh where am I gonna sleep?"

"Anywhere you want?"

"Can I sleep here? I don't want to intrude or anything."

"How come? Oh I have an idea." She exclaimed. "How about we both sleep down here? Then it'll be like a real sleepover!"

Ichigo smiled at her. "That sounds like a plan."

And so after putting the cake away, the forks, and the gifts that they both received, the two teens gathered blankets and pillows. They went to get dressed in pajamas and did their nightly routine. Tsukiko was clad in some green knee high pajama pants that had various colors of polkadots while her top was the same green color. Ichigo was dressed in blue pajama bottoms and was wearing a white shirt.

"Alright, time to sleep." Tsukiko said turned off the living room light and then walked to her spot on the floor. "Night Ichigo." She told him once she lied down.

"Night Tsukiko. Sweet dreams."

The two sleep a dreamless night.

The next morning, Tsukiko was the first to wake up at nine twenty-three, which was a miracle, for she always overslept on Saturdays. Ichigo still lied asleep. She got up and walked up to her bathroom and took a nice and clean shower. After her shower, she changed into some knee high black pants and a white muscle tee-shirt.

Tsukiko went to the kitchen, turned on the radio that she kept in her kitchen and began washing the dished that the two had used the night before. She always hated doing the dishes but no one else was going to do them. Dish after dish, she was ready to just stop but she couldn't since she knew that she would be too lazy to wash them later.

Ichigo awoke to the sound of a radio. An unknown song was being played and he got up to investigate. He rubbed his eyes and walked towards the source of the music. He headed to the kitchen and there found his answer. He walked back quietly and headed up towards the bathroom and took a shower.

After Tsukiko washed the dishes, she went to go and wake up Ichigo. She was surprised to find Ichigo not sleeping. She walked up towards the stairs and went to check in the bathroom. There she heard the shower on and with that known, she went back downstairs and went to eat.

"Man I'm now sixteen. I still feel the same." Ichigo mumbled as he headed back downstairs in dark blue jeans and a purple shirt. He walked to the living room and there he found Tsukiko eating cereal and watching cartoons.

"Morning."

Tsukiko looked away from the TV and said, "Morning. There's some cereal if you want on the table and a bowl and spoon. Milk's in the fridge."

"Thanks." He told her.

After grabbing his bowl that was now filled with cereal, he joined Tsukiko. The two chatted about the cartoon and the rest of their plans for the weekend. Tsukiko was going to train, while Ichigo was going to be with his family. Once Ichigo finished his breakfast, he grabbed all of his belongings.

"Thanks a lot Tsukiko. I had lots of fun. We should do this again and maybe Yuzu and Karin can come over." He told her as he stood next to the door.

"Glad you had fun. Yeah that would be a good idea."

"Well, see ya later." He said. At the same time, he gave her a hug.

Tsukiko hugged back and said, "See you at school. And happy birthday again."

"Thanks."

Ichigo released the hugged and opened the door. He gave Tsukiko a small wave and headed home. Tsukiko closed the door and smiled. She headed to her room and went to get clothes for she was now going to stay at Urahara's, well until Sunday night. Once she had everything, she grabbed Luna, who had finally woken up, and then left her house.

'Let the training begin!'


	19. Last Day of School and Training

Chapter 19: Last Day of School and Training Begins!

It was finally Monday, the one day that all the high school students had been waiting for. Summer vacation was just a few hours away from their grasps. All they had to do was survive the rest of the day and then they were finally free.

Tsukiko walked to school while limping a little. Her training was coming along very well, but there would be those moments when she would trip on a random rock. For being a dancer, she sure was clumsy at times.

Her music kept her entertained once she had reached the school building. It was not going to be the same now that Rukia was gone. Once that girl came into her life, it made things more interesting. But now that she was not here anymore, it would be completely different.

"Tsukiko!" A voice screamed her name. Hitomi came running towards her.

"Morning."

"Morning. Man what a nice day to end school huh?" Hitomi said in a nervous tone.

Tsukiko took notice of her voice and asked, "Is there something wrong Hitomi? Your voice sounds a bit off."

"It's nothing!" She replied quickly as she waved her hands in front of herself.

"Alright then."

The two continued walking in silence to change their shoes until Hitomi said, "I'm moving."

Tsukiko stopped walking. Her face held confusion as if she did not even understand the term. "What?"

"I'm moving. My mom got a promotion and it requires us to move."

"Move where?"

"Osaka."

Tsukiko didn't speak. Her mind was still processing all the information that she was gathering from this conversation. Moving. Promotion. Osaka. It had finally hit her. Her best friend was leaving her.

"W-When?" Tsukiko managed to say.

Hitomi looked down. Her bangs covered her face, not showing any emotion whatsoever. "Today."

A pang hit Tsukiko's chest. Another person close to her is going to leave her. Just like that. Tsukiko grabbed Hitomi's arms and pulled her into a hug. A soft sob escaped from Hitomi as Tsukiko held her as if she was life itself.

"I'm going to miss you so much. I wish you didn't have to leave." Tsukiko said.

"I'm gonna miss ya too. I know, I do too."

Tsukiko broke the hug and asked, "What about Den?"

"He is going to come and visit me. He might even try to convince his parents to move there as well."

"I hope everything goes well between you to. I know how much you love the guy."

"Yeah I know," Hitomi smiled. "Let's get to class, yeah?"

Tsukiko just nodded her head. The two girls continued talking about this big event. Once they got to class, Hitomi went to be with Den and Tsukiko just walked to her seat. She pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil from her backpack and began to draw.

Kuro Maho had visited her dreams once again. She said the same thing as before, not to worry and be scared. With the clear image of the magician, Tsukiko began to draw her.

Ichigo walked in the classroom and looked around. His classmates were talking with one another. He noticed Tsukiko, quiet and just drawing. He sighed and walked to his desk and placed his book bag down on the desk.

'Right now I...don't feel like I'm at school. Getting my ass kicked by those Soul Society guys...almost dying...' he looked over at the desk that once belonged to Rukia '...the fact she's not here right now...and the fact that not a single person in the class, besides Tsukiko, remembers Rukia...'

He looked around his fellow classmates, each one of them acting as they always had. But no Rukia.

'So this is what it means to return to Soul Society...You disappear...from this world...from people's minds...The entire truth of her existence...is disappearing...into thin air.'

"Well, now...I guess that's all for the agenda." Ochi-sensei said, "Okay you guys, don't die before September! That's all! Dismissed!"

Most of the students got up from their chairs and cheered. They were finally free. Ichigo and Tsukiko, however, remained in their seats. Ichigo looked towards Ishida's desk and thought,

'Damn Ishida. He ditched after all. I thought _he_ at least might remember Rukia.'

Tsukiko grabbed her stuff and placed everything in her backpack. She placed the black material on her back and walked over to Ichigo. He looked at her and saw her face. He knew that they held the same emotion that he was feeling, but what he didn't know was that it had happened to her twice.

"I-chigo! Tsu-kiko!" Keigo's voice called out.

A bandana covered Ichigo's eyes as he was suddenly pulled up from his desk by Keigo. Tsukiko face now showed some amusement, for she had a feeling that Keigo was about to get hurt in some way.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Wh-Whoosh!" He spun Ichigo around for a few times and then stopped. "Now, where's the watermelon?" He asked.

Bang!

Ichigo had swung at Keigo right on his head. An irritated mark was on Ichigo while Keigo had some blood and tears come out from him.

"Noooo! That's not it!" He screamed.

Tsukiko chuckled at the sight and said, "Can I take a turn hitting Keigo?"

"Yes!" Keigo said ignoring her current request, "When it comes to summer, it's all about the ocean! When it comes to the ocean, it's all about summer!" He was clad in a blue that had pink flowers. Around his left shoulder was a tube and across his chest was a red sash that read: Number one beach-boys.

He continued, "And on that note, I, Asano Keigo, propose a joint trip to the ocean-side for ten days starting tomorrow! From fireworks and bravery tests to co-ed hotspring bathing...it'll be filled with every possible thrilling and embarrassing situation imaginable!

"Sorry, I have stuff to do, so I'll pass." Ichigo said.

"Same here. I have to go help out my godfather in his store, so sorry." Tsukiko told him.

"I'm sorry, too. The ocean isn't my thing." Orihime told him.

"I've got nationals, so I can't either." Tatsuki simply said.

"If Orihime and Tatsuki aren't going, I..." Michiru said.

"I'm going to pass this time, too." Chad spoke.

Tears were streaming down Keigo's face. He had been rejected by his friends.

"Sorry, I'm going to Hawaii tomorrow." Mizuiro said.

Keigo screamed and grabbed the front of his shirt and began shaking him saying, "With who?! You going with your girlfriend that's an _older-woman_?!"

"To be precise, with her, nine of her friends, and me; it's an eleven-person trip." Mizuiro stated.

'Wow...' Tsukiko thought, 'it's like he is a pimp or something.'

"Whaat?! What the hell is that?! _Best Eleven_, huh dammit?!" Keigo said and then began to chase the pimp-like boy.

"How come you only get pissed at me?!" Mizuiro asked as he ran for his life.

As they kept on chasing each other around, Tsukiko motioned Ichigo to leave. Ichigo nodded his head and the two left the classroom quietly. After changing their shoes, the two walked out of school.

"It's weird huh?" Tsukiko asked him.

"Yeah. It's like I don't feel uneasy. Even without Rukia...our world revolves the right way."

"I guess it should." Tsukiko said, "I mean Rukia was originally from over there. Even though I really became close to her, it's as if there was no place for her here to begin with. But still..." She stopped walking. Ichigo stopped with her and said,

"So what should we do then..."

Footsteps were heard behind the two. Tsukiko turned around saw the person. Orihime was there behind the two. Ichigo turned around and saw the person.

"Inoue...What is it?" He asked her.

"Did something happen?" Tsukiko asked the girl.

"Where did Kuchiki-san go?" Orihime asked the two.

'What?! How- How is this possible that Orihime remembers? Wait...I think I know.'

"Why did everyone suddenly forget about Kuchiki-san? I thought you two would know..."

Tsukiko sighed. "I guess, we should tell you everything from the beginning."

"So Kuchiki-san returned to the world she was originally from?" Orihime asked after hearing the story from the two who remembered.

"Yeah. But I'm surprised...I wouldn't have thought you could see us, Inoue. When did it start?" Ichigo said.

"After the thing with my brother."

"Oh..."

'Wow that was way back.' Tsukiko thought after Orihime said that. 'Could she have seen or even felt me at some points?'

"You know, I'm really thankful for what happened then...for you guiding my brother. I'm sure he's happy on the other side. Somehow I get that feeling."

"That so?"'

"Yes. I wonder if Kuchiki-san's doing well there, too. She must have friends and family, too."

Now this surely did made Tsukiko think. She knew for a fact what Rukia did was a high crime, but would she be pardoned?

After Ichigo heard this, the image of one Shinigami appeared in his head. Kuchiki Byakuya.

"We've got to bring her back." Ichigo said.

"But...if she's happy there, isn't that..."

"Right now, she's...in a situation where she could be killed at any time." Tsukiko had interrupted her. Ichigo had the same thought in his head.

Orihime suddenly stood up from where she was sitting and said, "I bet I know what you both will say next..." For some odd reason, she made a fact scowl on her face and said, "_Whatever she has over there, family or whatnot...as long as she's alive, she can see then again someday. Once you're dead, it's all over._"

"Wow that was pretty good, Orihime. Except, I wouldn't have that scowl on my face." Tsukiko said. That had made Orihime smile.

"Both of your minds are made up, isn't it?"

Ichigo balled his fist and made a strong grip. Tsukiko looked at the floor and her hands on her knees trembled.

"She definitely...was here..." Ichigo spoke.

"There _is_ a place for her, right here." Tsukiko said.

Both teens stood up and grabbed their backpacks.

"Thanks, Inoue." Ichigo said.

"Thanks Orihime." Tsukiko said with a smile.

The two then left the bubbly girl, running to their next destination. Orihime ran behind them, watching them run to who knows where. She then felt someone next to her and looked to her left.

Chad was there, looking at the same direction Ichigo and Tsukiko had run to.

"Sado-kun..."

At the top of the stairs where the three were previously at, Yoruichi saw Orihime and Chad. She smiled.

Tsukiko and Ichigo kept on running.

"So we're going to Hat-and-Clogs place right?" Ichigo asked the girl running next to him.

"Yup. Meet you there?" She asked him.

"Yeah. See you in a while." He said as he headed to his house.

"Laters."

Tsukiko ran quickly to her house. Once she got there, she immediately opened the door and ran to her room, ignoring to take off her shoes. The first thing she did was grab a large duffel bag out of her closet and began to pile in clothes that she may need. The next thing she had done was grab any necessities, which consisted of her toothbrush, comb, deodorant, and anything else.

She grabbed her portable iPod charger, not wanting to take her laptop. She knew that if Jinta or Urahara were to grab it, it would be the end for the poor electronic device. She then began her search for her mod soul.

"Luna! We gotta go!"

Luna, who was currently in the kitchen, ran to where Tsukiko was at.

"Ok, I'm here now let's go!"

The two were now on their way to Urahara Shoten.

"That sucks. The _minute_ summer vacation starts, our Bro's already out somewhere." Yuzu exclaimed.

"Yuzu, " Karin said looking away from her paper, "that's enough of your-"

"Alright!" Isshin said as he suddenly appeared in front of Karin. "Then shall we sleep together in Dad's bed?"

Karin rolled up her newspaper and shoved it into Isshin's mouth, making him fall to the floor.

"Bite me! Sleeptalk AFTER you go to sleep!"

Yuzu sighed and said, "Just imagining it, I know I'll have nightmares."

"Well _I_ didn' fink it' such a 'ad idea..." Isshin mumbled with the newspaper in his mouth as tears flowed down his face.

Inside the Soul Society, life was going on as normal. It was a beautiful day. Abarai Renji was currently walking to his destination. He was barefoot and wearing a white male kimono that was adorned with pink flowers. He had a black obi wrapped around his waist and his chest and forehead were bandaged.

"Good morning, Abarai fukutaicho." Two girls bowed to him as he passed by them.

"Yeah."

He was now in front of a door that had the sixth division label on. He twirled the key around his finger and inserted it. The key glowed and opened, granting him access inside.

"Aaahh! Wait!" A male teen screamed as he chased down a Hell Butterfly. "If you fly away, _I'm_ the one who'll get scolded!"

The teen had black, short hair and dark eyes. On top of his eyebrows was a tattoo, almost similar to Renji's. He had some sort of earring that was hanging; its colors were red, yellow, and green. He was wearing the standard Shinigami uniform.

"If that's how it is..." He grabbed a toy butterfly that was pink and yellow and began to imitate a female. "_Hi, I'm Jennifer. I'm a Pisces and my blood type is A. My cup size is E. My three sizes are-_"

A foot came out of no where and hit the teen right in the face.

"What the fuck're you _doing_?!" Renji screamed.

"Renji-san! Aren't you off-duty today?"

"I'm checkin' on the prisoner. She still pissed off?"

"I haven't _pissed_ anywhere." Rukia stated.

"Then...why won't you touch yer food?" Renji asked as he held on a bar that was holding Rukia.

"I am simply not hungry, _fukutaicho_." Rukia mocked him.

"What, dammit?! You got a problem with me bein' a fukutaicho?!"

"No, not particularly. Do your best, fukutaicho! You're strong, fukutaicho! You've got weird eyebrows, fukutaicho."

"D-Damn you..." He yelled as used both hands to grab on the rails. "I'll kill you!! Come out of there, god dammit!"

"Say, Renji..." Rukia began "Am I...really going to die?"

"Of course." He said stubbornly. "You'll get the death penalty, instant execution."

"I see...You're probably right..."

"Come on, don't be stupid. Obviously I'm jokin'. _Joking_!"

"Which is it, you fool?" She said as she turned her head to face him.

"Who's the fool? You're the one acting weird and getting me to worry. Kuchiki-taicho's probably applying for a sentence reduction for you right this minute." He said as he closed his eyes, turned his head away and crossed his arms.

Rukia turned away from him said, "I wonder about that..."

He brought his arms down and said, "What are you? Stupid? He's your _brother_. No way he'd let his little sister die right before his eyes."

"No..." she said, "He will kill me."

Renji's faced clearly showed that he was shocked with the answer that Rukia had just said.

"I know well...what kind of person he is. In the forty years or so since I was taken in by the house of Kuchiki...that man...has not cared about me even once."

In front of Urahara's store, there was a sign that read: Closed today. Under a large tile in the shop, there was a secret passage way. The single ladder was extremely long.

Under the store, was a training room. The ceiling and walls were painted a sky blue colors, that also had some white faded in to add the effects of making it look as if there were clouds. The place in general looked like a desert.

"Whooooooooooaaa! What the hell is this?! Who'd thought there was su-ch a huge spa-ce under the sto-re?!" Urahara shouted out as he stood besides Ichigo and Tsukiko. Next to Ichigo were Tessai and Jinta. Next to Tsukiko was Ururu.

"Just shutup. You don't have to shout out for me. I'm surprised enough anyway." Ichigo said.

Urahara just laughed and said, "Okie-dokie then."

"God he can be an idiot sometimes." Tsukiko mumbled.

"Let's get on with it already...this _study-group_ or whatever."

"Alright, as you wish." Urahara used the end of his cane and hit Ichigo right on his forehead, causing his soul to come out.

Ichigo flew back a few feet. His body was about to hit the ground when Tsukiko grabbed it and placed it on the ground properly. A long chain was attached on Ichigo's chest. He stood up and began to scream at Urahara.

"What'd you do that all of the sudden for?!" He began, but the stopped. It seemed as if fatigue had hit Ichigo, causing him to fall on his knees.

"It's hard to breath in soul form, isn't it? Right now, your _soul sleep_, the source of spirit power, and its booster, your _chain link_, are destroyed."

"In other words, you're a normal human soul with no spirit power." Tsukiko said in much more simpler terms.

"We can't even begin until the spirit power you've lost is restored." Urahara finished.

"Then what do I have to do?" Ichigo asked.

"Yes, well, rather than explaining, I guess we'll just go ahead. Hey! You ready?"

From a small distance, Ururu stood there with some protective gear being held on her skirt.

"I'm looking forward to working with you." She spoke in her soft, cute voice.

"Huh?" Ichigo said.

"Lesson one: Fight with her, if you would."

"Ah?"

"The rules are simple...when one or the other can no longer move, you've cleared lesson one." The shop owner explained as he held a finger out in front of his face."Please, knock her out."

"Don't be ridiculous! You telling me to hit such a little kid?!"

"I think it'll actually be quite difficult."

Ichigo's gear was thrown at him. He turned and looked at the person who threw it at him. Tsukiko stood next to Ururu, helping her put her helmet on.

"There you go, Ururu. Does it fit fine?" Tsukiko asked the girl, smiling at her.

"Yes, Tsukiko-chan."

'Cute.'

"Please be sure to put those on." Ururu said as soon as Tsukiko walked back to Urahara. "Or else you could die." After she said this, she did a practice punch with her left hand.

"Ridiculous. No, I couldn't!"

"I wouldn't be saying that if I was you, Ichigo." Tsukiko told him.

Ururu had suddenly made a small step. After that, she was running in a speed quite unimaginable. She now faced Ichigo, her left hand pulled back a little. One punch and there was a huge amount of dust and dirt rising.

"See, I told you." Both Urahara and Tsukiko said.

As the dust began to settle, Ururu was now able to be seen. Ichigo, however, was still not seen.

"That bastard ain't comin' out, huh..." Jinta stated.

"Jinta, don't be mean." Tsukiko told him.

"Did he die?" Tessai wondered.

"I wonder." Urahara said.

Out of the dust came Ichigo. Tumbling about and all. It was a pretty funny sight to see.

"Oh, there he is." Jinta said.

Ichigo got up from the floor and began to run towards Ururu.

"Whoa, he's headed right at her." Jinta said.

He ran and ran, but he ended up passing the little girl.

"But, instead, he passed her by!" Tsukiko said. Her eyes were following Ichigo step by step.

Ichigo ran towards the gear that was given to him before the first lesson had begun. He grabbed it with his left hand and kept on running.

"This is fucked up!" Ichigo said as he kept on running. "'The hell was that?! If that hit me, it'd be instant death! Hey!" He screamed towards the spectators. "How do I put this on?!"

"Kurosaki-san!" Urahara shouted towards him. "Forehead! Your forehead!"

Ichigo skidded to a stop and place the head piece on his forehead.

"Like this?" He questioned.

"Then you scream as loud as you can..._Take this, the Power of Righteousness! Righteous Armor, The Justice Headband! Equip!_" Urahara shouted as he held his hands up to make his phrase more affective.

"That is the most stupidest phrase I have ever heard in my life." Tsukiko told Jinta.

"I agree with you there."

"Oh, okay...I got it." Ichigo shouted back. He looked up at the forehead protector. "Alright..." Then he threw it to the ground and yelled, "As if I could say that!"

Ururu, out of no where, came flying towards Ichigo. Ichigo quickly grabbed the forehead gear and ran for his life. He barely missed the punch Ururu had thrown.

"See? Not the time to worry about embarrassment." Urahara smiled behind his fan. He was finding this whole thing very amusing.

Ichigo kept on running and running. Avoiding any punches that were aimed at him. He placed the forehead protector on his head and then yelled out,

"_Take this, the Power of Righteousness! Righteous Armor, The Justice Headband! Equip!_"

"Oh, no way, he actually said it..." Urahara said.

"Ichigo, you're an idiot!" Tsukiko screamed at him.

Ichigo stopped running and was a few feet away from the group.

"You bastard..."

"Behind! Behind!"

Ichigo turned around and saw his opponent running towards him.

"O-Oh crap!" He then placed the headband on and it had then attached itself on him. He placed the hand pieces and was now ready. "Alright, bring it!"

Ururu immediately punched and Ichigo managed to move out of the way. She kept on running after him and trying to hit him. Ichigo would just kept on running and running.

"Dammit, this shit is useless! If I don't keep running around, I'll get smacked around! Wait..." Realization had finally occurred to him.

'If I can keep running, that means I can match her speed. In that case...' He once again, skidded to a stop and faced Ururu. Ururu looked surprised at his action, but kept on running.

"Come on!"

She had finally reached him and she threw a punch with her left arm. Ichigo moved his head to the left and dodged her attack.

"Wow he dodged it!" Tsukiko said with a smile on her face.

'It works.'

Ichigo then began running after Ururu, throwing punched of his own to her. Punch after punch, she kept on dodging them.

'I won't aim for the face. I'll just hit her headgear a little.' He thought as he kept on punching. 'If I do that, I got the weight advantage, so...No matter what...'

He threw a punch and Ururu had barely managed to dodge it, but it was not enough. He grazed her cheek, making it bleed a little.

'Shit! Her face...'

Ururu's eyes suddenly widened but her pupils had become small. She immediately jumped onto Ichigo's arm that was extended and lifted her right leg up. She kicked him right in the face with a powerful force. It sent him flying towards a wall and crashing on it.

"Safe." Urahara said as he held onto Ururu's right leg.

The dust cleared around Ichigo and he looked behind him. Tessai had protected him from hitting the rock wall. Ichigo kept on looking around him when he suddenly stood up.

"One more time, please." Ichigo asked.

"Congrats." This confused Ichigo, but Urahara continued. "Lesson one, clear."

"Good job Ichigo!" Tsukiko said as she ran towards Ichigo and hugged him.

"Uh, thanks? But why?! I lost to her!"

"Oh? You know, I didn't say you clear only if you knock out Ururu."

"But..."

"To begin with, this girl has anti-Shinigami level fighting ability. No matter how much a human soul struggles, it could never beat her. By the way, is it still hard to breathe?"

"Huh? Now that you mention it..."

"Basically, that means you have succeeded in getting back you spirit power." Tsukiko told him after she released him from the hug.

"That's right, Tsukiko-chan. The point of the lesson was a single attack...whether or not you could dodge the first attack. Spirit power increases most easily when the soul is in danger of termination.

"If your spirit power increased according to plan, you'd dodge the punch and _banzai_."

"And if it didn't?"

"You'd die." Tsukiko simply said.

"Dammit, tell me that _ahead of time_!"

"I believed...you _definitely_ could dodge it. Well then, since you've restored your spirit power beautifully, what do you say...we celebrate your passing? Let's just..."

Suddenly, a giant axe had come down and chopped off Ichigo's chain.

"Hey! You said I was the one who was going to do that! Not fair!" Tsukiko shouted at Urahara.

"...go on to lesson two."

"Fine, ignore me then." Tsukiko said stubbornly.

"Lesson?" Orihime asked as she was talking to Yoruichi. Chad stood next to her, silent for the moment.

"Are you willing to take it?" Yoruichi asked the two teens as she looked beyond towards the city.

"But...This is so sudden..."

"More like...the real issue is...a cat is..." Chad began to say.

"...is what?" Orihime asked.

"Hmm." Yoruichi said as she moved her head to face the teens. "Ichigo and Tsukiko have begun preparations to go to Soul Society." The cats head then went back to facing the city. "If you two also want to make use of the power you've awakened...then you must take my lessons.

"And whether or not you go there can come later."

"I will go." Chad said as he looked at Orihime.

"Sado-kun..." She said, looking at him as well, but then looking away. "I...well..."

He nodded at her, understanding what she was feeling.

"I won't force you." The cat said.

Orihime simply nodded a yes.

Inside a secluded area in a forest, there was a river that had a waterfall above it. A very beautiful place to be with that special someone. In this case though, Ishida was by himself, ready to begin his own training.

"Oh, there he is." Ishida turned around and faced where the voice had come from.

"Ishida-kun!" Orihime waved at the Quincy. "Yoohoo!"

"Inoue-san!" He said as he fixed his glasses. "Sado-kun! How did you two find this place?" He asked as he walked towards them.

"We had Yoruichi-san follow the spirit aura from your house." Orihime said.

"Yoruichi?"

"What are you doing? Camping?"

"No..." He fixed his glasses.

"He's training."

"Who's there?!" He asked while looking around him.

"What are you looking at? I'm here, over here." The cat said as it waved its paw at him. Ishida faced the black cat and then the cat continued. "I'm Yoruichi."

"Waahh!! A cat is...! A cat is...!"

"What? Just because a cat is speaking, there's no reason to lose it, boy." Yoruichi said.

Orihime then said, "That's right, Ishida-kun. It's no big deal."

"I think it's enough of a shock to give someone minor emotional trauma." Chad thought aloud.

"Men are such utterly unadaptable creatures, aren't they?" Yoruichi stated.

"Ah, uhm, excuse me." Ishida said, trying to regain his cool. "Now, just why is it you're here?"

"Actually..." Orihime began and there, the explanation/story began.

"Kurosaki and Takeshi are going to Soul Society?!" Ishida said. The three teens were sitting on some rocks that were near the small river.

"Apparently, they are going to save Kuchiki-san. I thought we should at least tell you, Ishida-kun."

"Unfortunately, it has nothing to do with me."

"Kuchiki-san's life is in danger you know!" Orihime said with a large amount of emotion.

"As a Quincy, I cannot forgive myself for losing to Shinigamis. _That_ is why I train. I don't care about Kuchiki-san." Ishida straight out said.

It had become quiet after Ishida spoke. No one said anything for a minute until Orihime broke the silence.

"I see. I guess you're working hard doing your own thing." Orihime stood up and said, "I'm going to carefully consider it again. It's certainly true that something's changing in me...and I'm scared, but I know I want to find out what it is."

Everyone looked at Orihime.

"See you, Ishida-kun." Orihime said, as they were now leaving.

'I'm sorry, Inoue-san. But I cannot let anyone see this training.' He thought as he began to open a box. As soon as it was opened, a glow emitted from it. 'Grant me your strength, Sensei.'

Tessai was not sitting on top of Ichigo, who was struggling to move.

"I'm dying"

"Precisely!" Urahara smiled.

"We're not supposed to kill him, you dimwit!" Tsukiko said as she went to punch Urahara. Sadly, she was stopped by Jinta and Ururu. "Let me at 'im, let me at 'im!!"

"Now that your chain of fate has been cut, you can no longer return to your body. You have to only die." He finished as he snapped his fan closed.

"Quit talking like it's got nothing to do with you!"

"And one more thing...the chain will begin to erode from where it was cut. If it reaches your chest, you will become a Hollow and it's _The End_."

"What?!"

"If you don't want to become a Hollow, you must become a Shinigami. If you can at least clear lesson two, you will be able to regain Shinigami powers once again. Well, you're free to choose either, though."

Ichigo smirked and said, "Ain't it obvious?"

"Okay." Urahara grinned. "Then here we go. Go!"

A large hole had suddenly appeared under Tessai and Ichigo. The two suddenly began falling at a fast rate. Tsukiko ran to the edge of the hole and watched them fall.

"AAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Holy snaps! That is one huge fall." She said.

"Were you surprised by my feint?" Urahara questioned.

"It could have been better." Tsukiko straight out said.

"Whoa, dude..."

"It's rather deep..."

"I did my best." Ururu said; a shovel was in her right hand.

"Good job!" TSukiko patted her head.

All the way at the bottom of the hole, the two had finally landed. Ichigo was faced down to the ground. His arms were restrained.

"Ow." He said. Ichigo tried to move his arms, but finally realized that he couldn't. "'The hell is this?!"

"Way of Binding, no. ninety-nine, Kin." Tessai said who was now currently sitting Indian style. "Forgive this arrogance, but until the lesson is over...I have forbade the use of your arms."

"Damn..." Ichigo said as he moved around like a caterpillar would. He stood on his knees and said, "You bastard!"

"Kurosaki-san!" Urahara screamed from all the way on top. Ichigo looked up and saw four figures. "Please climb up here in that condition. That is the current lesson." Urahara opened his fan and continued, "It's name is 'Shattered Shaft'."

"You dumb ass, I _can't_ do that!"

"It doesn't look like you have time to debate whether you can or can't." Urahara stated.

At the end of Ichigo's chain, two mouths had begun to eat the next link. Ichigo screamed in agony.

"At the bottom of the Shattered Shaft, erosion takes seventy-two hours to complete. That's three days. By that time, become a Shinigami and climb up from there, if you please. Otherwise, we...will have to put an end to you."

'You can do it Ichigo! I know you can.' Tsukiko thought in her head as she looked down the hole.


	20. The Sentence and Training Continues

**Alright!! Here is another chapter for you guys. Man I think this is the longest one I have ever written. Yay! I want to thank Black-HunterXX for reviewing. By the way, I got some inspiration from Naruto for one of the scenes, ya know when he trains with Jiraiya and goes to search for Tsunade. Well enjoy!!**

* * *

Chapter 20: The Sentence and Training Conintues

Rukia was facing Renji; her faced showed no emotion whatsoever. Renji's face, however, did.

"What did you just say?" His right had gripped the bar as he faced the person in front of him. "Kuchiki-taicho...what is..."

"You heard me. Do not make me repeat myself again and again." The six division taicho spoke with no emotion whatsoever, "The class one felon, Kuchiki Rukia shall be confined on death row...and twenty-five days from now, shall be put to death in the Central Court. That is the Soul Society's final decision."

Renji's faced clearly showed that the decision was not right. But knowing his face, he kept his anger to himself. Rukia lowered her head, as well as her eyes, already accepting her fate.

"This shall be the last time you and I shall speak." Byakuya directed to Rukia. He turned away from her and walked away. "Rukia, the next time we meet shall be on the execution platform."

'We must not shed tears.' Rukia thought. 'That is the defeat of the body by the heart. Because, for us, this thing called "the heart" can become nothing less than proof that one's existence is superfluous.'

"Lesson two...Shattered Shaft." Tessai said.

"At the bottom of the Shattered Shaft, erosion takes seventy-two hours to complete. That's three days. By that time, become a Shinigami and climb up from there, if you please. Otherwise, when you become a Hollow...we will have to put an end to you." Urahara said.

"You son of a bitch, you tryin' to kill me?!" Ichigo screamed.

"Yes...the moment you give up."

Tsukiko stood aside with Ururu and Jinta. The three were playing with Luna, who ended up falling from the ladder.

"Tsukiko-chan! 3" Urahara called out towards Tsukiko.

She looked up and said, "Yes?"

Wham! His cane came straight through her forehead, sending her falling onto her back. She jumped back up and screamed, "What the hell was that for?"

"Time for your training." He simply said.

"Couldn't you have at least warned me? I mean, I could have just gotten Luna out of her body and all."

"No, this way is more fun. Now then come along." He began to walk away.

"Ururu, Luna, can you both please watch my body and make sure Jinta doesn't do anything with it?"

"We will."

Tsukiko followed the bucket hat man and stood next to him. "So how are we going to work on my spirit energy?"

"Hmm...I'm not sure."

She anime fell to the ground and got up. "What do you mean you're not sure?! You agreed to this telling me you knew what to do."

"Yes well, after training you for two days, I detected something different about you. Normally I can help you out with normal spirit energy, but yours is a bit different."

"Different as in how?"

"Its magic based. You have both normal and magic based spirit energy. The normal energy is when you don't call out an attack, like Mystic Shadow Strike. But the magic energy is once you call out an attack. With the magic, you can do all sorts of attacks and defenses. The normal ones allow you to go fast, determine other spirit energies, those types of things."

"So then how is this going to work?"

"I'll help you with your normal spirit energy. For your magic energy, you will either have to go to your Zanpakutou's spirit world or summon it here. In order to summon it, you may have to work on your normal one first."

Tsukiko nodded her head. All of this information about having two based spirit energies hadn't surprised her as she first thought it would have. After all those dreams with Kuro Maho, she didn't find it shocking at all.

"Alright. I'll do it. Let's work on the normal one first."

Random yelling was heard in a warehouse. Both Chad and Orihime were the ones who were causing all the yelling. As they were yelling, they both did random arm gestures that went along with it. Yoruichi just sweat dropped.

"This is totally hopeless." That certainly caught the attention of the two teens. "At this rate, I'll never be able to send you to Soul Society."

"What? Come on..." Orihime said.

"Don't 'Come on' me. If you don't gain the ability to manifest your powers at will...then even if you go to Soul Society, you'll just die like a dog. It's not a difficult to do. Just remember the first time and follow that."

Orihime then said, "That's easy to say, but...back then, I was just frantic..."

"What were you frantic about?"

"What?"

"When a person takes up arms, they are trying to protect something. It may be their own life...their status...their honor...someone they love...something they believe in...be it good or bad, there's no difference in their desire to protect. Recall what it was that you wanted to protect that day." The black cat explained to the two.

"Oh."

'I...Ichigo's sister?' Chad thought of Karin in his head. '...Red hat' an image of a hat appeared '...Long hair' long black hair showed up '...She's Ichigo's sister so...she looks like Ichigo?' an image of Ichigo came out 'A girl...' Red lipstick appeared as well. Then suddenly, a rather disturbing image of Ichigo looking like a girl came into Chad's mind. He choked.

"Looks like you've failed to remember it completely." Yoruichi told him as a sweat drop appeared. The cat turned to face Orihime and said, "What about you?"

"I..." Inside of Orihime's mind, the image of the octopus like Hollow appeared. "I...Back then..." The events that had led to her new powers appeared in her mind. "I was just frantically...frantically..."

Her flower pin shined and Chad took notice. "It sparkled!"

"Really?!" She asked excitedly.

The pins glowed and broke apart. Her six little guardians appeared. "You guys!" Orihime smiled.

"You called?" Shun'ou asked. "When you're in need, don't hesitate to tell us."

Tsubaki then came and kicked Shun'ou on her back, causing her to stumble to the side.

"Exactly _where_ in this situation are our powers needed?!" Tsubaki demanded.

"What did you do that for?!" Shun'ou exclaimed as she rubbed her back.

"I'm sorry. I was remembering some things and I just..." Orihime stopped talking as soon as Tsubaki kicked her own forehead. "Ow!"

"Don't friggin' call us when you're not in a pinch, you stupid woman!" He began to pull her hair and Ayame just simply was on top of Orihime's head.

"Tsubaki, cut it out." Ayame tried telling him.

"Owww!"

"You're hurting her." Lily said.

"Shut up!" the male shouted. "She pisses me off!"

"No! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please! It hurts! Ah, stop it! Nooo!" Orihime shouted as she ran around, trying to get Tsubaki off of her. Everyone just looked at her run. Chad even had a sweat drop on his face and Yoruichi scratched her head.

"You damn...stupid woman!"

"Tsubaki, cut it out already." Shun'ou demanded.

"Oh dear, oh dear." Hinagiku said. "He's going wild again."

"Tsubaki is such a violent guy." Baigon commented.

"I said I'm sorry!"

"Well done." Yoruichi said. "Although, it looks like next she needs to practice on how to train her power. Well then..." the cat looked at Chad, "how about you? For what reason will you go to Soul Society?"

Tsukiko stood aside from those who were near the whole and it had been nearly fifteen hours since Ichigo was in the hole. She took out her phone and it read twelve eighteen in the afternoon. She sighed as he put her phone away and sat was down Indian style concentrating on her spirit energy. She remembered clearly what Urahara told her.

"_When you can make a ball of energy on top of your hands in your human form, then we shall move onto the bigger and funner things._"

'Energy ball huh?' She closed her eyes and held her right hand out, palm facing upwards. Inside her head, she began to think up ways to form this one thing. 'What if I concentrated on one spot, would it help?'

She opened her eyes again and looked at the palm. "Maybe if I just make a small cut and look at the blood, I can surely concentrate on that area." She looked around her and found two small rocks. She carved out one of the rocks and made the edge pointy.

"Here goes." She grabbed her new bladed rock with her left hand and pressed it upon her right palm. She winced in pain, but ignored it. She pressed a little harder and she succeeded. Blood seeped out of her cut.

"Now that that is done, let's go onto the next task."

Tsukiko concentrated on the single drop of blood that was forming at the center of her palm. Every ounce of her spirit energy that she felt, she transferred it onto her center. She focused and focused.

Ten minutes passed by and by now, small beads of sweat seemed to appear on her forehead. She kept on concentrating. Suddenly she felt something happen. The energy was coming to her.

Burp!

She covered her mouth with her left hand and she sweat dropped. All that time she spent concentrating only helped her to burp.

"Okay, let's try this again." She focused her eyes on the crimson red spot. She sent all her energy into her right palm. She kept staring at the spot, waiting for something to happen.

A black, glittery light sparked. Tsukiko blinked, not believing whether she is seeing things or not. She poured more of her spirit energy to her palm, wanting to know whether this was working or not. A small black sphere began to form over her blood.

Her eyes widened in surprisement. She was doing it! The small sphere kept growing in a slow but steady pace. At the moment, it was the size of a ping pong ball. Tsukiko closed her eyes and focused feeding more of her spirit energy to the ball.

Once she opened it, she smiled. Before her very eyes, the energy ball got bigger and bigger. The energy ball was now the size of a billiard ball and it kept on getting larger. One more rush and then it reached a perfect size.

Tsukiko got up from the floor carefully, not wanting to lose all the concentration she had on her spirit energy. She walked towards Urahara and called out to him. "Oi, Urahara!"

Urahara turned his and faced Tsukiko. A smiled was plastered on his face.

"Ah so you managed to do it! Good job. Now try throwing it and catching it."

She just looked at him as if he had two heads. "Huh? Man it took me a while to do this and now you want me to get rid of it?!"

"Yup!"

'God this man is insane! Alright, here goes.' She lowered her right hand down and then brought it back up. The spirit ball flew up towards the sky and then came back down. Tsukiko watched the ball and once it was starting to come near her, she readied some spirit energy to capture it. She moved her left hand and there, it had landed.

"I did it!" She smiled while jumping up and down.

"Good! Now we can go to the bigger and funner things!" Urahara smiled in delight, but then the smile faded away. "Tsukiko, why is your hand dripping blood?"

Tsukiko lifted her palm and held it in front of her face. Blood was indeed falling more faster. 'Ah crap.'

"I had to make a cut so I can concentrate and all. I'll go and bandage it up. Oh and Imma go to the market and pick up some ice cream. I'll be back soon."

She walked away from him and passed by Jinta, Ururu, and Luna. "Hey Luna, wanna come with?"

"Sure."

Once the two were in the store, Tsukiko headed towards the bathroom and began her search for bandages. She found a one and began to clean the cut. The cut sizzled after putting on rubbing alcohol and a small amount of foam had appeared over it. It had gotten infected and it would end up leaving a scar.

After she bandaged herself up, she grabbed Luna and placed her inside one of her tote bags. One foot outside and they were already blinded by the bright sun.

"Damn, freakin' sun. You are now on my hit list." Tsukiko said aloud.

The two left the store and headed to one of the markets.

"Wow. The underground training room literally makes you lose track of time, eh Luna?" Tsukiko asked.

"It sure does. What are we going to buy?"

"Uhh, I am in the mood for some ice cream. Oh and maybe some chocolate flavored pocky. We'll see what else there is once we get there."

ROOOAAAAARRRRR!

Tsukiko stopped walking and Luna kept quiet. A Hollow had just roared and by the sound of it, it was not that far. Tsukiko immediately pulled Luna out of the bag and reached her fingers inside the mouth of the plush dog.

Out came the silver candy pill. Tsukiko popped it into her mouth and swallowed. Out came her soul and Luna now took over her body.

"Come on, Luna. You'll be my back up today." Tsukiko spoke as they both began to run.

Tsukiko began trying to sense the Hollow. After two days of training, she had managed to be able to detect Hollows by their own spirit energy. The Hollow was near the residential houses.

The two ran as fast as they could. Once they reached their destination, there stood the Hollow in all of its ugly glory.

The Hollow's body was just like a lions, the tail long and pointed like a scorpions'. The mask was large, chalk white, and had spikes all around the top. It roared.

Tsukiko removed Kuro Maho from its sheath, preparing herself for a fight, while Luna a got in fighting position as well.

"Let's rock!"

Tsukiko ran towards the Hollow, Luna right besides her. She went to strike at one of its legs, but failed to do so. The Lion-like Hollow swiped her with its tail and sent her flying to a wall.

"Tsukiko!" Luna shouted in worry.

"Do not stop. Keep fighting."

Luna ran towards the Hollow. She managed to dodge the tail and aimed to kick the Hollow in the face. By now, Tsukiko had managed to get up and run back to the fight. While the Hollow was distracted, she stabbed the front ankle. The Hollow screamed in agony. Luna had managed to kick the Hollow, but there wasn't a large amount of force to crack the mask.

"Damn pestering Shinigami. Stop moving so I can eat you!!" The Hollow roared.

"Over my dead body!" Tsukiko screamed out.

"With pleasure." Then the Hollow did something that neither of the two suspected. It moved its tail with such great force, pushing Luna towards the wall. And then it happened.

It stabbed Luna on her right shoulder blade. Both Luna and Tsukiko screamed. The same place where her body was stabbed at was now being shown on her soul. Blood rapidly came out of Tsukiko's/Luna's body. Blood had also flowed out rapidly from Tsukiko's soul.

"HAHAHA! Is that all, little Shinigami! You and your little human self are going to die now!"

"Run, Luna! Go somewhere! Anywhere!"

"But-"

"Not 'buts'. Just do it! It will save us both!!"

Luna nodded and ran. Every step she took she winced. Blood was running down her green shirt and the shirt began to soak up with blood. She didn't stop running, but only managed to look back one last time. She saw Tsukiko dodging the Hollow's tail. She looked forwards and ran to the once place she knew was the closet.

Tsukiko was now alone. She wished that Rukia was here, helping her out at any way possible. She wished Ichigo was here to back her up no matter what. Hell she even wished Ishida was there too.

'Must stay calm,' she thought, 'use all the information you have learned in training.'

The Hollow laughed and brought up it tail, reading to strike it downwards towards her. Tsukiko quickly summoned all her spirit energy and sent it towards her feet. The Hollow yelled as it brought down its tail with great force.

'NOW!' She then became a blurry image to the Hollow. With the force that the tail had, its pointed end had gotten stuck on the floor.

"WHAT?! Where did you go?!"

"Behind you."

The Hollow turned its head and saw Tsukiko for a few seconds, until she disappeared again.

She had finally perfected Shunpo! She had managed to move much faster then she could have possible imagined. She smiled and was now facing the Hollow.

"Now, go to hell! Kuro Maho, Mystic Shadow Strike!"

The black glittery beam erupted from the two sais and headed directly towards the target. The Hollow screamed in misery as a beam escaped its mouth. Behind the Hollow, a gate appeared.

The gate was a dark purple color, making it intimidating to the eye. Four sets of chains were around the very top of the gate and they were atop two skeletons. Each one had a missing arm, but it made it seems as if there were two arms. The skeleton to Tsukiko's left had its right eye bandaged along with the rest of its head, only showing the left eye, mouth, and its nose. The right arm was holding the center of the door. The skeleton to her right was the same as the left, only the opposite. Its right eye, uncovered and it had its left arm out.

The hands began to move. Its grip on the opening got harder. It began to pull it apart. The chains, which were once hanging a little, were now being held under pressure. Each one of them snapped. It the back, it was pure red.

Purple gust appeared as soon as the gate was fully open. The Hollows mask began to disintegrate and suddenly a large sword appeared, stabbing the Hollow. A large hand held the blade and pulled the blade back into is domain. The doors closed slowly. As soon as it was closed, the gate began to crack and it shattered into millions of pieces.

Tsukiko had finally witnessed the Gates of Hell for the first time. She snapped out of her gaze and remembered what she had to do now. She had to look for Luna. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the mod soul's spirit energy. She found it and then used flash step to reach her.

Luna was lying in one of the hospitable beds the Kurosaki's had in their clinic. Karin had found her walking and immediately ran to help her. She helped Luna towards their house and luckily, their father was there.

He had cleaned the cut and bandaged it up. He told her that it was going to leave a scar and that the scar would take a long time to fade a little. But the strange thing that Luna noticed was that Isshin never said her owner's name. Luna ignored it and just listened to what he had said.

Overall, the only injuries that she had were bruises on her back and where her ribs were at and the large gash she had gotten thanks to the Hollow. He had told her that she would have to spend the night and she would be able to leave tomorrow in the evening.

Tsukiko ran to the Kurosaki Clinic and as soon she arrived, she looked through one of the windows. She found Luna, laying down one of the beds asleep. Luna was wearing a large white shirt and the bandages on her body was visible. From what she was able to see, it was wrapped around her chest and on her right shoulder.

Tsukiko sighed. She knew that she would have to wait outside until it was dark. She sat herself on a tree that was nearby the Kurosaki's and waited.She turned her head around and began to examine all of the damages she took. She looked on her right shoulder blade and noticed that the bleeding had finally stopped.

'That is _really_ going to leave a scar. I wonder what else I got.'

She opened her shirt up a little and Tsukiko gasped. Where her ribs are at, a purple and greenish color was surrounded by her natural color. She placed her shirt back down and sighed.

"Damn stupid Hollow and damn me for not paying attention carefully." Tsukiko said to herself when a yawn flowed out of her mouth. "I think I'm just gonna take a nap here."

Tsukiko made herself comfy on the tree branch, closed her eyes, and fell asleep quickly due to exhaustion.

"Where is that girl?" Urahara said as he took a bite of his apple.

"Who knows." Jinta said while he looked over the edge of the hole.

"Should I go look for her?" Ururu asked.

"No, let her be. She might have run into some friends or something."

Inside the hole, Ichigo was still on the floor. The mouths on the chain was eating another piece and as soon as they swallowed the last of one piece, they went back to sleep.

'Now...the fifth erosion is over. It looks like these things repeat a cycle of erosion and sleep ever few minutes.' Ichigo groaned and began to move. He stood up on his knees as his thoughts continued,

'During the erosion, I can't even move from the pain, it's so intense my hair's gonna fall out. So I'll try...when these things are asleep.'

Ichigo stood up from the ground and looked at the wall that was in front of him. He ran as fast as possible. His right foot hit the wall and that's when he began his descend up towards the top. Ichigo shouted as he kept going up but then, he lost his footing, causing him to fall back down.

"Dammit!" He shouted.

At the top, Jinta and Ururu were staring down the hole. Urahara sat behind them, his fan covering his lower face.

"That brat's unbelieveable. He's actually climbed about three meters up this almost vertical wall using that approach." Jinta commented.

"Oh. Well, well." Urahara said as he fanned himself.

"That idiot." Ururu plainly said.

Ichigo was once again flat on his back breathing heavily.

"Damn!" He said aloud.

"Heeey!" Jinta shouted from above. "You hungry at all?"

"No, I'm not! I'm a friggin' soul right now! How _can_ I be hungry?!" Ichigo screamed back pissed off.

From atop, Jinta grinned a cat-like smile. "That's good. I'll tell you something interesting. If you get hungry while you're a soul...that's a danger signal that you're one step away from becoming a Hollow." That certainly caught Ichigo's attention, but began to sweat drop at what the boy said next. "Well, when you're thirsty, you're still ok. When that happens, you can drink some of my spit."

"Bastard!"

As spit began to form out of Jinta's mouth he said, "Come on, Ururu. You do it too."

"Okay." The little girl said and began to spit herself.

"Hey, come down here, dammit! You brats! That fell on me! Quit that! If you don't quit, I'll kill you! Quit! Quit it!!"

Urahara took a bite of a fresh red apple.

When Tsukiko woke up, it was late at night. She didn't know the exact time or how long she even slept for. She jumped from the tree and landed on her feet. She walked her way towards the Kurosaki Clinc and looked for an open window. On her first try, she found one. She lifted it open quietly and once it was open, she snuck inside.

The house was quiet. Everyone must have been asleep. She walked up to Luna and saw here there asleep. Tsukiko smiled at her and then began her search for her bag. It was next to the bed on a chair. She looked through the bag and found her cellphone. It read eleven forty-nine.

Tsukiko sighed and placed her phone back. She turned to face Luna and began to shake her awake.

"Luna...Luna...Luna wake up!" Tsukiko whispered while she shook the mod soul.

Luna groaned and opened her eyes. "Tsukiko!"

"Shhh." Tsukiko said with her index finger covering her mouth. "Be quiet. We don't want to wake anyone up. Ready to go back to your body?"

Luna nodded and remained still. Tsukiko went on top of her and let her soul be taken back inside its proper place. Once Tsukiko was back in, she spat Luna's pill onto her still bandaged palm. She grabbed the stuffed dog plush and placed the pill in its mouth. Luna then began to move around and looked at Tsukiko.

"I was _so_ worried about you. Did everything go ok?" The dog asked.

"Yeah, everything went fine. Sent the damn bastard to hell. So, did Isshin say when we were going to be able to leave? Oh and what are the damages?"

"Damages are that you now will have a scar that is about five inches long now. There is a bruise over your ribcage and some on your back. Otherwise, you're fine and we can leave tomorrow in the afternoon." Luna then stopped speaking and her small black beaded eyes made it seem as if she was going to start crying.

"Luna what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry," she sniffed, "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had these injuries."

"Oh Luna," Tsukiko grabbed the stuff animal and gave it a hug. "It's alright. If it asn't for you, I could have died. Now let's get some sleep ok?"

The dog nodded her head and closed its eyes. Tsukiko lied back down, closed her eyes and fell asleep for the second time.

It was around eight forty-five when Tsukiko awoke to someone cooking. She gently lifted herself up and looked around. Her shirt from yesterday was soaked in blood and now she had no other shirt.

The door opened and Tsukiko turned to look. Karin walked in, a tray in her hand. Eggs, bacon, two pieces of toast, and a glass of orange juice were on the tray. Karin looked at her and said,

"Morning Tsukiko. You feeling better?"

"Morning Karin and yeah I feel much better. Thank you so much for finding me."

Karin set the tray in front of Tsukiko. "It's no problem. It was a good thing I found you when walking back from playing soccer."

"Thanks, big time!"

She smiled and said, "Well, eat up now. My dad is gonna come and check up on you soon. I'll be back in a while to pick up your plate."

"Alright. And thanks again."

Karin simply nodded and left the room. Tsukiko sighed and ate the food brought to her. She ate everything in a matter of ten minutes, when someone else walked in. This time it was both Yuzu and Isshin.

"Tsukiko-sensei! Are you feeling better?" Yuzu asked as she ran towards her.

"Yeah, I'm feeling better. Just that the bandage is making me itchy."

"Don't worry; I'll change it for you once dad checks up on you."

"Alright now let's check those wounds on you." Isshin said as he began to inspect all of the damages.

Tsukio winced once he touched the bruise on top of her ribs.

"This might take less than a week to fade away. How did this happen?" Isshin asked.

"Some guys just ganged up on me. They were trying to rob me. I managed to knock 'em out but one of them got me from behind. Then I ran and that's when Karin found me." Tsukiko lied.

"I see. Well, let's check that stab wound." Isshin began to remove the bandages slowly. She winced when she felt the cool air hit her wound. He began to clean it once again. Once he was finished, he called Yuzu over. He looked at the teen and said, "You better take care of yourself alright. You can leave at noon if you want."

She nodded at him and he smiled.

"Alright. I have to make sure that Ichigo's girlfriend is safe ya know." He said with a large grin.

As soon as the words escaped his mouth, he was hit in the head by none other that his own daughter Karin.

"Shut your mouth you old man! We can only make fun of them when they are both together." She shouted.

"Your right I forgot. Now both of you help her shower and all those things I told you to do."

"Yes dad." The fraternal twins spoke at the same time.

Isshin smiled at the three girls and left. Karin and Yuzu faced Tsukiko and said,

"Time to take a bath. We're gonna help you so that the wound won't bleed again."

Tsukiko just simply nodded and stood up. With the help of Yuzu and Karin, they led her to the bathroom and helped her take a bath. The entire time, Tsukiko felt extremely awkward. Having two girls younger than you help you bathe was pretty weird. After her bath, she was given an extra toothbrush and she brushed her teeth.

She was dressed now in the same black shorts and was wearing a white bra. Yuzu and Karin began to bandage her back, leading to her chest and ribs. After that, she now had a white tee-shirt, courtesy from Ichigo's room. Tsukiko was about to dry her hair, when she had thought of something.

She had been wanting to cut her hair for the longest now. She thought that perhaps she could cut it herself and thus, a light bulb went on.

"Hey Karin, Yuzu, come here for a sec."

The two girls walked over to her. Karin then said, "Yeah?"

"Do you guys have some scissors?"

"I'll go get them." Yuzu volunteered and went to grab them.

"Why do you need scissors?"

"Gonna cut my hair."

Yuzu came back and handed her the scissors. Tsukiko thanked her and asked if they wanted to help. They both nodded and then their work began. Once Tsukiko was finished, her hair was now short. It ended above her shoulder and it was in various layers, just like when it was longer.

"Awesome! We did such a good job!" Tsukiko said as she gave the girls each a high five.

"Tsukiko, you can leave now. Tsu-Where's Tsukiko?" Isshin asked as he approached the three girls.

"Uh, I'm right here." She said.

Isshin was shocked. "What happened to your hair?"

"I cut." She said while her fingers went through her hair.

"Looks nice. Oh and you can leave now. Just be careful, alright?"

"I will and thank you all once again." Tsukiko gave them all each a hug. She went to grab her stuff and left their home.

Once they were walking, Luna popped her head out of the bag and looked at Tsukiko.

"Nice hair."

"Thanks, now let's go to the market."

She ran quickly to where she originally was supposed to be at. At the market, she took out her cell phone and checked the time. Barely two nineteen. She sighed and began searching for what she needed to buy.

After going down every isle, she got what she needed. Ice cream, pocky, ramen, and some feminine necessities. She knew that she could always steal some chocolate from Urahara's shop whenever she needed it and that would be extremely soon.

She went to the register and paid for all of the items. After she paid, she walked outside and checked her cell phone once again. It was now three o' five. She walked back quickly to Urahara's and as she walked, she hoped that no one she knew would recognize her. Why? So she wouldn't be stopped to talk about how vacation is so far.

She finally got there in twenty minutes. She walked inside and placed everything in its proper place. She put the ice cream in the fridge and went to her room. She placed the pocky and ramen by her duffel bag that was next to her futon. After that she went inside her bathroom and placed her new razor and tampons inside a cupboard.

After doing all that, she fixed her hair and grabbed Luna from her bag and headed towards the ladder. She climbed down, which took her about six minutes and then walked to the rest.

"So what have I missed?" She asked.

Urahara, Jinta, and Ururu turned to face her. Surprise was in their faces once they saw Tsukiko.

"What did you do to your hair?" Jinta commented.

Urahara hit him in the head to shut him up and Ururu said, "I like your hair, Tsukiko-chan."

"Thanks Ururu. But seriously, what did I miss?"

"Nothing much, just that Kurosaki-kun has reached his sixth erosion. And that these two started spitting at him. Now tell me, what took you so long? You were gone for almost two days."

"Ah you see," she began as she rubbed the back of her neck. She told them the story of how she encountered the Hollow and how she and Luna had gotten injured and how the Hollow was sent straight to Hell.

"I see. Well, let's continue your training."

With that said, Tsukiko grabbed Luna and reached for the pill. She managed to find it on her first try and popped it into her mouth. Her soul came forth and there, everyone saw her scar.

"Okay, let's get to work. What do you want me to do?"

Urahara thought for a second and then said, "Practice your Shunpo. Run around the whole area for two and a half hours then have a break, then run again for another two and a half hours and then try to walk on air."

"How they hell am I suppose to _walk_ on air?!"

"Just think of it as a floor. Now go and run along."

Tsukiko simply sighed and concentrated on her spirit energy. She then began to run around the whole place. 'This is going to be boring.'

Urahara just sat there watching her run around. The man just chuckled when he saw her almost trip after her fourth lap. He then turned back to the hole and watched the two kids keep on spitting at Ichigo.

After the running for two and a half hours, Tsukiko was dead beat. She lied on the ground, breathing heavily, trying to catch her breath.

'Jeez even dancing doesn't make me breathe as hard as I am now.' She thought as she moved her arms to make a head rest. 'And I still have two and a half more hours to go.' Inside her head, fake tears were pouring out like a river.

Ururu walked towards Tsukiko and laid down next to her. "Are you tired, Tsukiko-chan?"

"Tired is an understatement. It's more that I'm dead beat."

Ururu laughed. "You'll get used to it eventually. You should take a nap, its most likely getting dark outside already."

"Hmm, how 'bout we go and check? C'mon, I'll give you some ice cream that I bought."

Ururu smiled and nodded her head. The two got up and walked towards Luna.

"C'mon Luna, let's go upstairs for a while."

They walked to the stairs and climbed up. Tsukiko practiced jumping from wall to wall. At first, she had somewhat tripped on her own feet but managed to catch her fall by grabbing the ladder. She then did it again but when she was more than halfway, she fell. Luckily, Ururu managed to grab her. After thanking her, she said in her head that the third time is a charm. And it was.

Once she was at the top, she went back in her body and placed Luna back in her own body. The three walked to the kitchen and prepared their ice cream and ate it. The three were just relaxing and kicking back. Soon, they fell asleep.

After napping for almost four hours, Tsukiko changed her bandage. They then went back to the training ground and Tsukiko went back to training. She ran around again as a Shinigami and then after running for two and a half hours, she then began to try walking on air.

'Here goes.'

Urahara had just finished eating his eleventh apple. He wiped his mouth clean with his thumb and stood up.

"I wonder if it's night outside. It's terribly hard to tell time in this room."

Down in the hole, Ichigo was laying down on his side.

'Damn...I can't get up there...' he thought as he looked at the top. 'How much time has passed...I don't know. How the hell can I climb this wall?!'

Up at the top, a figure appeared. The figure then came running down until it reached the bottom. It was Jinta and he had with him a plate filled with fruits.

"I brought you food." He spoke with a grin, "I figured you'll be getting hungry soon."

Ichigo grinned as he spoke, "What're you talkin' about? Hungry, my ass. Take a good look." He looked down to his chain of fate and said, "There's still plenty of my chain of fate left." He looked back at the boy.

Jinta's grin faded and he said, "It's understandable you can't sense time in a hole like this."

"Time?"

Jinta placed the plate down and said, "Just about seventy hours have passed since you've entered the hole. Faster people would be turning to Hollows about now." Ichigo got to his knees as the boy continued, "And one more thing...The last erosion...is _nothing_ like the others."

As soon as Jinta said this, erosion began once again. This time, every piece on the chain began to form mouths.

"All the links are...Quit that...Stop, you bastards! Sto-" The chains were now completely gone and there was now a hole on Ichigo's chest. White liquid began to spill from his eyes and it came out of his mouth. Ichigo screamed and a Hollow mask began to form on one side of his face.

Jinta made it back to the top and there was Ururu. As soon as Tsukiko heard the screams she ran towards the hole. Panic was on her face.

"Oh, shit. He's really becoming a Hollow!" Jinta said.

"Beginning rescue measures." Ururu said as she had her left arm out in front of her.

"Hold it."

Ururu turned around and said, "Kisuke-san..."

"Look closely at him." All three of them did as he continued speaking, "Normally, when a Plus descends to a Hollow...first the spirit form shatters and reconstitutes into a different form. But he's totally out if sequence.

"The mask is being born first, while the body is still a Plus. This is a sign if his resistance. There is still a possibility he will return to being a Shinigami. Let's watch what happens a little longer...until he really becomes a Hollow. Just a tiny bit longer."

"You better be right, Urahara. Or else I am going to kill you." Tsukiko said as she walked away back to training, not wanting to be near them at all.

Ichigo screamed. It was there a voice spoke to him.

"Can you hear me, Ichigo?"

Ichigo opened his eyes and saw buildings. Everything was sideways, to him, the building were not going straight up as it normally does.

"Where...am I?" He said as he looked around.

"Over here."

Ichigo turned around and there he saw a man. Long dark brown hair flowed in the air, while a pair of black clear sunglasses was on his face. He had a moustache and a beard. A long black jacket flowed around him as if the bottom was ripped. Under that jacket was a white shirt, the collar having tears as well. He had on black pants and black shoes. And as he faced Ichigo, he was on top of a pole.

"Who...are you?"

"'Who'? What are you talking about? It's me, --."

'I can't hear him.' Ichigo thought as he kept on facing him.

"I see. So I still haven't reached you...How sad. Just how many times must I strain my voice before it will reach you? And yet, nowhere in this world can there be anyone who knows me better than you."

"What're you talkin' about?" Ichigo asked with his eyes closed. "Sorry, but I dunno anyone as depressing as you." Ichigo opened his eyes and stared in shock. "You...how did you..."

The man was now not on the tip of the pole, but on the side of it now as if he was on a balance beam.

"You surprise me. How can you sit in such a place?"

Ichigo finally took notice but it was too late. He had begun to fall backwards. He screamed in fright and the man began to fall with him.

"If you're screaming, you must be relaxed. That's promising. Don't worry. A Shinigami is he who controls death...He rules over a great many spirits."

"R-Right now, I'm _not_ a Shinigami." Ichigo said as kept on falling.

"Remember! The Shinigami powers destroyed by Kuchiki Byakuya were...only the Shinigami powers given to you by Kuchiki Rukia. Of course they were. They were all he set his aim on. Because he thought the matter would end if he eliminated only those. He was careless. He failed to see that you have your own Shinigami powers."

"My own...Shinigami powers?" Ichigo asked in a shock.

"That's right. It's just like your friend, Takeshi Tsukiko when she first came in contact with a Shinigami. It's the same with you. Your powers, which began to awaken because of Kuchiki Rukia's powers, hid themselves in the depths of your soul the instant before Kuchiki Byakuya's attack."

The man turned his body around so that it looked as if he was standing up. "Now, find them! If there were any time you could seek out your hidden Shinigami powers...it is only now that this world had begun to crumble."

The buildings began to crumble and instead of rubble, boxes began to fall. "Among the countless boxes now falling, your Shinigami powers are hidden in just one. Find that _one_."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Ichigo shouted.

"I won't listen to excuses. There is no time. If you don't find it before this world completely crumbles...then you will become a Hollow."

Ichigo kept on falling and then landed in water. He kept on sinking; the boxes following him.

'How do I...look for just one box with Shinigami powers inside, out of _all_ of these...How the hell do I find it...First of all, I...was never good at sensing spirit power or whatever to begin with. Didn't Ishida say something like that...Ishida? How did he figure out that Tsukiko and I were Shinigamis, anyway?'

"...eh?" Ishida's voice began to ring out.

'Some kind of easy way...'

"...know eh?"

'Somehow high and mighty...What was it...' Ichigo closed his eyes and began to think.

He was remembering Ishida holding out a ribbon. Then Ishida spoke clearly, "Did you know, eh? Shinigami's spirit threads are color red."

Ichigo opened his eyes and finally remembered. "That's it!"

White threads began to appear in front of him. But there was a single red one that stood out. Ichigo grabbed it and shouted out, "This one!"

He pulled the box and it opened. "What...the...A Zanpakutou's...hilt?" There was the hilt of his Zanpakutou.

The man appeared behind Ichigo and he sensed him.

"You did well to find me," He spoke. "I hope that _next time_, my name will reach your ears."

"You...could you be..."

The buildings began to crumble and fall.

"What are you doing?! It's crumbling! Pull me out already!"

Ichigo grabbed the hilt and began to pull it out.

As the others kept watching, Ichigo's Hollow mask was almost complete. Tsukiko stood next to Urahara's right while the two kids and Luna were on his left. Ichigo's scream was haunting Tsukiko, for she did not want to see something like this happen.

The bonds on Ichigo began to break and Tessai took quick notice.

"It's at the limit, Manager! Switching to suppression style!" He stuck his hands to the ground and said, "Way of Binding No. Ninety-nine, type two: Bankin! First song, Shiryuu!" Bandages wrapped around Ichigo. "Second song, Hyajurensan!" Knives of some sort stabbed Ichigo.

The ground began to shake from where the other was at.

"Hey, Tessai! If you hit 'em with that, he'll die!" Jinta yelled down towards Tessai.

"What?! You can't do this, Tessai!" Tsukiko screamed.

"At this point, I have no choice. I have already reached the limit of simply holding him. He must be eliminated before he becomes a Hollow." He placed his palms together as if he was praying and said, "Final song, Bankin Taihou!"

A coffin-like box fell from the sky and was heading straight towards Ichigo. A crack began to form where Ichigo's chest is suppose to be at.

"This is the end!"

The box landed on top of Ichigo and then there was an explosion.

Urahara and Tsukiko grabbed the kids and Luna and hovered over them, protecting from the beam that emitted from the bottom of the hole.

"Something came out!" Jinta said.

A beam came out and landed on the ground. Urahara and Tsukiko got off the kids and Luna and looked to where the thing landed.

"What the hell was that?!"

The dust began to settle as they all stood up. Jinta and Tsukiko began to walk forward.

"Hey!" Jinta shouted out. "Is it you? Answer, orange boy! If you're alive, answer me!"

Red glowing eyes shined through the dust. As soon as the dust cleared, there stood Ichigo. A white cloth was pinned down and flowed with the dust while another piece of cloth was on his head. He was in his Shinigami clothes, but there was a Hollow mask on his face. The mask was white with three red stripes curving towards where the nose should be at. Most of the mask was covered by the cloth.

"Shinigami clothes and...a mask?" Tsukiko said.

"Is he a Hollow? A Shinigami?" Jinta asked.

Ichigo moved his right hand and grabbed the hilt of her Zanpakutou. Tsukiko grabbed her sais, while Ururu and Jinta readied themselves for a fight, if one was to happen.

"Don't take us lightly! Come on, if you're coming!"

With the hilt of his weapon, Ichigo slammed it on his face, breaking the mask. The shattered pieces fell to the floor and Ichigo grabbed the remaining part with his left hand. He lifted it off his face while the cloth went with it.

Everyone was shocked. He moved the remaining piece and moved it so that it was on the left side of his head.

"He _didn't_ become...a Hollow." Jinta said.

'I knew he could make it!' Tsukiko thought in her head.

"Tsukiko," she turned to face Urahara, "I want you to go back to training. But if something is to go wrong in the next lesson, protect the kids."

"Okay." She walked away from the group and continued her training.

Ichigo balled his left hand and released it. He did it for a few more times when clapping was heard.

"Congrats!" Urahara said as he now faced Ichigo. "You've returned to being a Shinigami _right on time_." He had a huge smile on his face and he held his opened fan. "Superb! Lesson two, clear!"

Ichigo walked over to Urahara and said, "Shut your _trap_!" He hit Urahara with then end of his hilt right on the man's chin.

Urahara was on his squatting, his hands covering his face as Ichigo stood over him. Ichigo laughed and had his arms crossed as he spoke, "The second I came back to life was the second your luck ran out. I swore..." He said with his finger up in the air, "...if I got out of the hole alive, I'd make sure to..._kill you dead_!" Anger marks were all over his head as he pointed at Urahara.

Urahara moved his hands from his face and looked at Ichigo. He grabbed his cane and said, "Well, that's perfect." He stood up and continued, "Let's use that energy and...go straight to lesson three."

"Ehh?" Ichigo said as his right eye began to twitch.

"Lesson three has no time limit." Urahara pointed to his hat and continued, "Knock my hat off with your Zanpakutou and it's _clear_."

Ichigo swiped what was left of his Zanpakutou upwards, a light shining after his attack. It made a small tear on Urahara's bucket hat. Ichigo jumped back and Urahara took notice of the cut on his hat.

"Impressive. Such an attack with only a broken Zanpakutou..."

Ichigo pointed out his broken weapon towards Urahara and said, "Of course! If I get serious, I've got plenty more where that came from! Forget that laid back 'no time limit' crap...Let's settle this in about _five minutes_." Ichigo stated as he held his hand out with all fingers and thumb up, representing the number five.

"Yes, well...Okay, in five minutes..." Urahara grabbed the top of his cane and pulled it up. There he showed his own weapon. "...let's settle it."

Tsukiko was sitting down; she made an energy ball from her spirit energy and began to through it up in the air. She sighed made it disappear.

"I wonder if I can make a shield of some sort with my spirit energy. That is magic right." She thought as she scratched her head. She grabbed one of her sais and with the other hand, she grabbed a rock.

She tossed the rock upwards and with her right hand she concentrated her spirit energy into the sai and waved it in front of her. Hoping that a shield would appear, the rock began it's descend downwards but no shield came out. The rock hit Tsukiko on her head and she held it in pain.

"Okay, this is going to take a while."


	21. Training Outcomes

**Alright guys here is another chapter for all of you. This originally was an extremely long chapter, almost reached twenty-two pages, so I decided to shorten it. Hope you all enjoy it. Thank you to all who reviewed my story and added me to their story-alerts and such. Take care!**

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Chapter 21: Training Outcomes

"The class one felon, Kuchiki Rukia shall be confined on death row...and twenty-five days from now, shall be put to death in the Central Court." Kuchiki Byakuya spoke with an emotionless face. "That is Soul Society's final decision."

Kuchiki Byakuya was walking on his own, heading to his own destination. He then stopped.

"Pretty calm back there, sixth squad taicho-san. Exemplary, exemplary." Byakuya turned around and looked at the voices. "So calm even though your sister's gonna die. That's the sixth squad taicho-san for ya. A shining example of a Shinigami."

"Don't be ridiculous." Another voice said. "The only Shinigami scared o' dyin' is pretty much just you and the ninth squad taicho."

"What? Really?" The same first voice said.

"Two squad taichos appearing _without_ their adjutants...what do you want with me?" Byakuya asked.

Two other taichos were behind the sixth squad taicho. One of them had silvery hair, eyes closed, and a large fox-like smile. The other had black long hair that was spiked up with bells attached to the end. He had an eye patch over his right eye while on his left there was a scar going from his hairline, down his eye to his chin and had his stomach bandaged.

"That ain't nice." The silver haired taichio said, "We heard your sister's gonna be executed, so...we were worried you might be depressed."

"It has nothing to do with you gentlemen." Byakuya said straight out.

"There's no way you'd be depressed, right? For noble families, criminals are obstacles, after all." The spiked hair man spoke.

"Oh? I don't expect a commoner could comprehend the subtleties of the aristocracy."

"That ain't true. I've always been pretty considerate. Whadda ya say? While I'm being considerate, want me to go to that criminal...and lop off her head for you before the execution?"

"I didn't know...One can cut off a head with just your skills?"

"Want me to try it on ya?"

"You want me to let you try it?"

Suddenly, the other two taichos were gone. Byakuya looked to his right and found them. The silver haired taicho had managed to tie up the black haired taicho and take him to the roof from the building next to them.

"Hey, dammit, Ichimaru! Let me go, bastard! Let me kill him! Let me kill 'im!" The black haired taicho shouted as he struggled from his hold and while Ichimaru spoke.

"Give 'im a break, sixth squad Taicho-san." The silver haired, now named, Ichimaru said. "_I_ at least didn't mean to make ya mad. Well then, say hi to your sister for me."

Then they were gone. Byakuya just watched them go and then he walked away.

Back with Tsukiko, Ichigo, and the rest, Tessai was barely getting up from the hole. He fixed his glasses once he was at the top.

"Heave ho." He said as he pulled himself out.

Jinta turned around surprised and said, "YOU WERE OKAY, Tessai...-san?"

"Okay my rear. My glasses are in critical condition!" The giant man said while he dusted himself and then pointed at his glasses.

"In other words," Jinta said with a dumbfound face, "YOU're uninjured, right? Whatever." He turned his back and said, "Even if they're broken, you should keep'em on."

"Hmm..."

"The Owner's drawn his sword and it's getting interesting. Miss this and you'll regret it."

Urahara stabbed his sword through a rock and destroyed it completely. Ichigo jumped away to dodge the attacks and any flying rocks.

"Pretty good...for such a skinny sword!" Ichigo said with a grin on his face.

"Uh-oh, I got complimented...But that won't make me take it easy on you!" Urahara said with a large smile and while chasing Ichigo, swinging his sword.

"Just the way I want it, you dirty bastard!" The orange head shouted.

'Wait...Wait, wait, wait! Ain't Zanpakutous the only things that can cut Shinigami or Hollows? That sword...is something he pulled out of his cane a minute ago. There's no way it could be a Zanpakutou! If that's true, even if he cuts me...nothing should happ-' Ichigo thought as he ran, but once he stopped, the remainder of the Hollow mask flew off.

"You let your guard down. 'It belongs to a guy who's not a Shinigami...so it's not a Zanpakutou...so it doesn't matter if he cuts me,' eh?" Urahara said as he stood there watching Ichigo. "You're totally naïve. Awake, Benihime."

His Zanpakutou suddenly began to change and Ichigo stared in shock. The weapon got longer; the top was black while the bottom was silver. The hilt completely changed. The hilt had gotten longer and at the end, it curved out. The guard was different as well. It was red and the part that covered some of the blade was beige, with an accessory hanging off of it.

"She's a hundred percent Zanpakutou, this girl."

In Ichigo's head, Urahara's command still lingered. "Awake, Benihime." Renji's command also flowed through his head. "Howl, Zabimaru. You can't even ask your own Zanpakutou's name. A bastard like that..."

"Zanpakutou's...name?"

"Yes. Zanpakutous each have their own name. Like Tsukiko's whose name is Kuro Maho. And this is..." he said as he held out his own Zanpakutou, "_her_ name. Let's go, Benihime."

He swiped across him and there, the attack was released. White light appeared and cut the rock. As Ichigo flew across, Tsukiko grabbed Jinta, pulling him back from getting hit. Tessai was holding Ururu.

Ichigo skidded on the floor and looked up. Urahara was coming at him fast. Ichigo lifted the remainder of his own Zanpakuotu and blocked the attack.

"I'll praise you for not running and stopping my blade with your broken sword. You got some big cahones. But...Benihime isn't so sweet that you can block her completely with that broken sword."

Urahara's Benihime began to slice through Ichigo' small amount of his blade. Urahara brought down his weapon quickly and Ichigo pulled his upwards.

'Oh shit!' Ichigo thought as he saw the piece fall to the ground. He then began to run from Urahara. 'You've gotta be kiddin' me! He friggin' sliced off my Zanpakutou!'

"He told you, didn't he?" This caught Ichigo's attention. Behind Ichigo was Urahara as he continued to speak, "Your sword is just big, that's all."

Ichigo swiped his blade upwards, hoping to hit Urahara. But Hat-and-Clogs simply moved his head back.

"There's no spirit energy stuffed in it. It's just a swollen and fluffy object in the shape of a sword. That's why..." Urahara swung his blade and cut the guard and the remainder of Ichigo's blade. "...it breaks up so easily like that." The remainder of the guard had fallen off.

"Now then, your sword is gone. You still want to come at me with that? Don't worry, it's just knocking down my hat. It's not impossible even with just a hilt. But...it's no longer just a question of bravery or courage." Ichigo brought down his hand as he continued to listen. "I suppose I'll tell you up front."

A pinkish, red glow now surrounded Urahara. His hair and clothes moving along with the wind. "If you still intend to fight me with that toy...I will kill you."

Panic was in Ichigo's eyes as he ran.

'I'm gonna die! I'll be killed! For real!'

Next to him, Urahara appeared. His face did not have his goofy smile, but a serious look. Ichigo screamed and managed to dodge an attack. He kept on running.

'This is pathetic! What is _wrong_ with me?! Why am I running? Is that all I've got? Is that my resolve?'

Urahara grabbed Ichigo from the back of his top and pulled him down.

'Pathetic. Pathetic! God dammit...I'm an incurable coward!'

"What are you doing?" the same man that he saw was now standing in front of him.

"That dude..."

"Why do you run, Ichigo? You still have not called me." He said from behind him now. "Face forward, Ichigo. You should be able to hear it now. That which blocks you ears is worthless fear."

Ichigo had stopped running.

"The enemy is one, you are one. What is there to fear?"

Urahara stopped running as well and watched him curiously. Everyone did.

"Hey, what is it? They both stopped in their tracks." Jinta said.

"Shut up and watch." Tsukiko told him.

Urahara prepared himself for an attack.

"Cast off your fear!" Ichigo brought his right arm to him. "Look forward!" Dust began to circle around Ichigo. "Go forward! Never stand still. Retreat and you will age. Hesitate and you will die. Shout...my name is..."

"...ZANGETSU!" Ichigo shouted loud as he attack Urahara from a distance.

The attack caused rocks to fly. Ururu wasn't near the rock that protected them and Tsukiko took notice of this. She ran towards her and covered her. They closed their eyes, hoping that nothing would happen.

"Tsukiko! Ururu! What now?!" Jinta asked as he was being protected by Tessai, who was also protecting Luna.

The dust settled and once Tsukiko opened her eyes. A black shield had protected the two girls.

"Thanks, Kuro Maho."

Urahara held his hat as the dust settled. There, Ichigo was squatting, holding what seems like a new hilt that was bandaged. Ichigo's new Zanpakutou was large like his first one. It looked like a giant butcher knife. The top black while the lower part was silver. There was no guard whatsoever. Ichigo stood up and watched Urahara intensely.

"What's up with that Zanpakutou..." Jinta began.

"That's incredible." Tsukiko thought aloud.

"...It's got no hilt _or_ guard! It doesn't even have a regular sword's shape! Compared to that, the last sword was better." Jinta said.

Ichigo looked at his blade but was interrupted when Urahara spoke again.

"Well, now...Now that your Zanpakutou's come out...let's _really_ start lesson three."

"I'm sorry, Urahara-san."

"Uh?"

"Please be sure to dodge."

"Excuse me?"

"I probably...can't hold back!" Ichigo said as he lifted his right arm up with his new Zanpakutou. The remainder of the cloth on his right shoulder suddenly ripped off him.

"Call out, Benihime!" Urahara shouted as he called his Zanpakutou to protect him, now knowing what Ichigo meant.

Ichigo rose up his Zanpakutou and swung downwards.

Urahara's hat was in the air, a tear was seen.

"Woo...If I didn't have this bloodmist shield...you'd have taken at least one arm." His hat flew down next to him. "Oh man, my hat's ruined." He said as he cleaned the dirt on it. He then began to put it back on, "But...I didn't expect _this_ much from one swing. Kurosaki-san..." He said as he looked at Ichigo.

Ichigo was down on his knees. His right hand still holding his blade.

"...you're a frightening child."

Ichigo had fallen asleep holding his blade.

"Lesson three, clear."

From Ichigo's attack, the ground was sliced in a straight line. Any rocks that were along the way had been cut up as well.

"Tsukiko-chan..."

"Yes, Urahara?"

"Can you bring Kurosaki-kun a blanket and a pillow?"

"Yeah, sure."

Tsukiko used her Shunpo and ran towards the ladder. She jumped along the walls and got up without falling. She walked towards her room and grabbed her pillow and her blanket. After doing that, she walked back to the stairs and there decided to do something new. Instead of climbing down the ladder, she simply jumped. Yes that seemed a bit suicidal, but she wanted to test something. A rather strange theory.

As she was falling with the two items on her hand, she closed her eyes and focused on her spirit energy to her feet. Tsukiko wanted to try to "float" on air. She was falling down in a fast rate.

But once she was 5 meters away from the ground, she stopped. She opened her eyes and saw herself standing on air. She grinned and shouted out,

"Oh yeah! Who's the man!"

She began to run towards Urahara and the sleeping Ichigo. Once she was near, she began to walk and called out Urahara's name. The shopkeeper looked around, trying to find the voice of his Goddaughter.

"Up here."

He looked up and there he found the ruby-eyed Shinigami. "Ah Tsukiko-chan! You brought the pillow and blanket. And not only that, you managed to walk on air. How did you do it?"

"I fell down from the top of the ladder." She said with a shrug. "I realized that when in danger, all this stuff works. Like when I actually made a shield to protect Ururu and myself."

She jumped from the air and landed in front of Urahara. She walked towards Ichigo and placed the pillow on the ground. Afterwards, she grabbed his Zanpakutou and placed it on the ground next to the pillow. She then moved him so that he was lying down on the ground and as soon as he was down, she covered him with the blanket.

Tsukiko looked at Ichigo and smiled. He looked innocent when he was sleeping and he didn't even have that scowl on his face.

'He is cute. Man, I should go back to training.'

She walked away from him and headed to Urahara.

"Okay, I'm ready to continue my training."

The bucket hat man smiled and whipped out his fan, "Now let's see what the next task is. You manage to release your spirit energy and use it for Shunpo. You managed to walk on air and run with Shunpo. You can now detect spirit energies from Hollow, Shinigamis, and other beings. I think you are now done with this part of training."

She smiled and spoke, "I finished my 'normal' spirit energy training?"

"Yes. Now you are going to work on your magic spirit energy. For this you must chose, would you rather summon or go to the world of your Zanpakutou."

"Hmm..." she shifted her weight to her left leg, "Can I summon her first and then go to her world? Is that possible?"

Urahara walked towards her and hit her on the head with his fan.

"Hey!" She said as she held her head from his spontaneous attack.

"Of course it is possible. You are training with me so anything is possible. Now in order to summon your Zanpakutous spirit, you're going to emit as much spirit energy to your weapon. Only then will she come out. Now, why don't you move over there so you won't kill anyone?"

"If I was to kill anyone, you'd probably be my first." Tsukiko mumbles as she walked away from him. She passed Luna, Ururu, and Jinta. Tessai was no where to be seen.

'Must have gone to get them some food.'

She walked further until she was in a secluded area. She pulled out Kuro Maho from its sheathe and just stared at it.

"I am ready. Now hopefully, I worked on my spirit energy enough to bring you out of there. Here goes."

She closed her eyes and focused. She pictured Kuro Maho from her dreams, waiting for her to appear. It was then when Tsukiko felt someone touching her shoulder. She opened her eyes in panic and turned to look at who touched her.

There stood Kuro Maho. The same clothes that she saw in her dream were the ones that the female spirit was wearing. Everything down to her tattoos was the same.

"Hello, Tsukiko. You called me forth to train you?"

"Yes. I need your help with my spirit energy. I-" Kuro Maho raised her hand to silence her.

"Yes I know what it is you need, for I have been watching you the whole time." Kuro Maho then had a grin on her face and crossed her arms across her chest while saying, "Especially a few minutes ago when you were looking at that friend of yours."

Tsukiko blushed and waved her arms in front of her, "I-It's not what you t-think. We-We're just friends."

"Uh-huh." The magician said unconvinced. "Friends...for now. Okay, now that we have established that, let's get to work. The first thing that we are going to work on are defenses, since you already now one of my attacks."

"Okay, defenses...But how?" Tsukiko asked as she played with her short hair.

An evil gleam shined in the magicians purple eyes.

"HOW IS THIS GOING TO HELP IF YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME?!" Tsukiko shouted as she dodged various attacks from the magician.

"You said it yourself, when in danger you can achieve anything." Kuro Maho said as she ran towards Tsukiko. In her hands, there was a katana. It was pure black and shined whenever a beam of light hit it, making it look as if a rainbow was flowing out.

"Yeah, I _may_ have said that, but _this is ridiculous_!" Tsukiko shouted as she blocked the attack with her two sais.

Kuro Maho smirked and with a wave of her hands, Tsukiko's weapons were now gone.

"Huh? Wha-What happened? This isn't fair!"

"Life is not fair and you should know this! Think back when the shield came to you! What did you feel?"

As Tsukiko ran, weaponless, she remembered the event that led to the summoning of the shield. She wanted to protect Ururu. She wanted to save her life from any danger. Her gloved hands began to glow black.

'What is going on? Wait a minute!' She remembered her first attempts with making a shield. She tried to use her weapons, but it didn't work. But when she protected Ururu, she didn't have her weapons.

Tsukiko stopped running, finally realizing it. She looked at the gloves. Black cotton material, the same as her own Shinigami clothing, and a metal plate covering the top. This was her defense system. She turned and faced Kuro Maho.

The magician was running towards her and swung down the blade. Tsukiko lifted her hands and suddenly, the shield emerged. Every strike, she would block the attack and when she believed she had the hang of it, she blocked one finally strike and managed to kick the magician in the stomach.

Kuro Maho fell on her knees and looked up. A smiled was plastered on her face. "You did it!" She shouted as she jumped up the air and choked Tsukiko in a hug.

"C-Can't bre-breathe!" She stuttered out.

Kuro Maho released her and smiled at the girl, who ended up sitting on the floor. "Do you now understand the difference between your weapon and these gloves? Do you now know why you even have these gloves?"

Tsukiko lifted her knees up and rested her arms on top of them. "My weapon helps me fight off my enemies that harm the people I care for. My gloves, my own hands, are the ones that can protect the people I care and love. I now understand the difference."

Kuro Maho nodded her hair and said, "Did you know that you can even summon your weapons with those gloves if they have gone missing?"

The teen looked at her extremely interested, "Really? And how do I do that?"

Kuro Maho sat down on the floor. Her legs were crossed Indian style and she said, "All you have to do is think about them. It's like a summoning. You can throw it to attack an enemy, like a dagger, and they would come back to you, like a boomerang."

Inside of Tsukiko's head, she began to think of her sais. In an instant, the two sais came flying towards her, landing in on her palms. "Wow. That's incredible."

"Mm-hmm." Kuro Maho said as she nodded her head. "It's like their both magnets. They attract one another and they balance each other. Now, I think I am going back to my forest and go to sleep for a while. Call me or visit me when you want to go back to training."

Tsukiko nodded her head and said, "Yeah. I'm most likely gonna go visit your place. I really like the scenery."

"Good. Well night!" The magician waved and then dematerialized.

After she was gone, Tsukiko let out a huge sigh and fell flat on her back. She was tired and it was noticeable. Beads of sweat fell from her forehead and she didn't even want to move.

She looked up at the fake sky; a black dot was falling. Tsukiko squint her eyes to try to see what it was. As the object fell, it got bigger and bigger until it was now visible to the eye. A rock the size of her body was falling towards her.

"Oh crap!" She screamed when she lifted her arms and hands in front of her and created the black shield. Once the rock made contact, it broke into millions of tiny pieces.

Laughter was heard in the back ground. She got up from the ground and looked towards the direction of the voice. Jinta stood there, holding his stomach as he kept on laughing. An evil force covered Tsukiko. Jinta saw her face and said two words,

"Oh crap."

Tsukiko ran and chased after the red headed child. "Jinta! I am going to _kill_ you!!"

She grabbed her sais and shouted with anger, "MYSTIC SHADOW STRIKE!" The black sparkly beam flew towards Jinta. He was lucky enough to dodge it.

"Get back here you twerp! I'm not done with you yet!" She kept on running when something with orange hair showed up.

"AH!" She crashed into Ichigo. The two tumbled for a few seconds until they came to a stop. They opened their eyes and immediately blushed. Ichigo was straddling her and he had his hands on the side of her head.

"I-Ichigo, c-can you move pl-please?" She stuttered out as the blush on her face kept growing.

Ichigo's blush kept growing as well. He got up from the floor and held his hand out for Tsukiko to take. She grabbed it and was lifted up. The two kept on blushing when Ichigo realized something.

"Your hair. Did you cut it?" He asked as he stood there; his left hand rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah. I cut it when I was recovering."

"It looks cute. Wait recovering? What happened?"

Tsukiko sighed as she turned around. He gasped. He looked at the scar in front of him. He walked towards her and touched the scar. She gasped when he touched her. His smooth finger ran down the scar and ran up it again. He then grabbed her shoulders with both of his hands and pulled her towards his chest.

Tsukiko was blushing the entire time and once she touched his chest, she blushed even more. Ichigo hugged her from behind and said,

"If I was there, I could have protected you. I'm sorry."

She turned around and hugged him back. "No Ichigo you shouldn't be saying that. It was my fault. I-I should of paid more attention." She released the hug and looked at him. "So are we ready to continue training. I gotta practice my shield, fighting attacks, and all that jazz."

"You have a shield?"

Tsukiko just smirked at him and showed him. She lifted her hand and made the shield. Ichigo's eyes widened and said, "Wow. That's amazing."

"Thanks. Now let's get to work!"

For the remainder of the week, the two kept on practicing. Tsukiko kept on working with her shields and all of her attacks. When she would go visit Kuro Maho's realm, she would learn fighting styles, advancing the current level she was at. She would mix martial arts and such. She continued to run around using her Shunpo to advance it more and would always go out to observe all the sorts of spirit energy to be able to determine the difference between who it is and their level.

Ichigo trained as well. He kept on practicing fighting and such. Since he used to fight recklessly, he was now learning the proper techniques of fighting. Day after ay he kept on training hard; sometimes he would pass his limit and pass out. But in the end, he would get back up and keep on training.

In the heart of the forest, birds flew across the sky.

"All right! It's complete." Ishida said.

Beads of sweat were dripping from his forehead. On his right hand, a rather interesting glove covered half of his arm and hand. It was white and two blue strips; one going around his wrist and the other from the tip of his middle finger down to the end of the glove, as well as on his thumb and index finger. A strange looking bow began to dematerialize and return to where it belonged.

"Thank you so much, Sensei."

Inside of a warehouse, a flash of light appeared out of a window. The beam of light kept releasing, until...the window and some of the concrete around it exploded as well. Smoke and dust floated up towards the sky. The rubble fell down to the floor.

Looking through the hole, Chad stood there with his armored right hand out. Besides him on both sides were Orihime, who was on the ground kneeling, and Yoruichi was to his right.

"You did it!" Orihime cheered as she lifted the armored arm up in triumph. "You did it, Sado-kun! You did it! Amazing!"

"You fools!" The female teen stopped her cheering while the male still remained quiet but shocked.

"Have you never heard of restraint?!" The cat shouted at them. "You have created a scene! Run and hide already! Take the back door!"

The two teens ran off to find a place to hide.

"Okay!" Orihime said as she ran.

'But...who would have thought he'd learn to call forth his power in such a short time...' Yoruichi thought as she watched them run.

Sudden yelling interrupted the cats thinking. Orihime had her hands in the air and shouted, "Sado-kun fell down the stairs! Uhhh..."

'Would you look at that...' The cat thought as lots of sweat drops fell from its head.

Time flew by fast and it was finally August first and it was approximately six thirty pm. The blue sky began to fade and was beginning to be replaced by various orange shades.

'After finishing the study group at the Urahara store...while the group was making preparations to open the door to Soul Society...Tsukiko and I was told to go home and wait...but...' Ichigo thought as he was standing with everyone. Everyone meaning himself, Tsukiko, his two sisters and father, Chad, Orihime, Tatsuki, Keigo and Mizuiro.

"SO NOW IT'S FINALLY HERE, THE LONG-AWAITED FOREWORKS FESTIVAL!" Keigo shouted with a mighty look.

"You're full of energy..." Mizuiro calmly said as he watched him.

"OF COURSE! HOW CAN I STAY CALM?! RIGHT, KURO-SAN?!" He said the last part directing it towards Isshin.

"Yeah, that's right, young man! By the way, I have some box seats reserved at seven this morning. Why don't we all go there together?" Isshin said with a shine.

"Seriously, sir?! Alright!"

Ichigo and Tsukiko just watched the two with confused faces.

"How about you lovely ladies over there?" He said directing his question towards Tatsuki, who had her right arm broken, and Orihime.

"We'll come later." Tatsuki replied.

"Okay, gotcha! Alright dudes, let's go! _Let's Go!_"

After that was said, everyone began to run off. The only ones who remained where Tsukiko, Ichigo, Orihime, and Tatsuki. They all watched them run and Ichigo finally spoke,

"Oh, well. Guess I'll go, too." He turned to face Tatsuki and said, "Sorry Tatsuki, makin' you come all the time. You don't have to come if you don't wanna."

"I know that," was her response as she moved her left wrist up and down. "Don't worry, I'll be there later. Hurry and go. You too, Tsukiko go with him."

"You sure?" She asked.

"Yeah, just go."

Tsukiko smiled and nodded and walked next to Ichigo. She was wearing a black muscle tee and some dark blue skinny leg jeans. Ichigo had on a purple shirt with the words _NICE VIBE_ written on it and a yellow star underneath the _E_. Under that shirt was a red shirt and he was wearing jeans. On his right wrist was a wristband with two horizontal red striped and between them a white one.

"Are you excited, Ichigo?" The girl asked him as the walked along the road to catch up to the rest.

"About the fireworks...I guess. Haven't seen them in a while. And you?"

She smiled and said, "Of course! I haven't seen fireworks in such a long time. Well since last year, but still!"

Ichigo smiled at her comment and then remembered something. "You're turning sixteen in six days. How does it feel?" He asked while pretending to hold out a microphone.

Tsukiko laughed and said to the pretend mic, "Feels awesome. So what are you giving me for my birthday?"

"Now that's a surprise." He told her as he brought his hand down.

"C'mon Ichigo. Tell me!"

"Nope!" He grinned as he placed both his hands behind his neck. "You're just gonna have to wait and see."

"Fine." She pouted. An idea came up in her mind. "Hey Ichigo?"

"Yeah?"

"Race ya to the rest!" She shouted as she began to run off.

"Hey no fair! You little cheater!" He yelled as he ran after her.

"Takes one to know one."

"They're all so lively." Orihime said as she watched them all run.

"Seriously. Sometimes it's tiring." Tatsuki replied as she lifted her injured arm.

"Tatsuki-chan, does your hand hurt?" Orihime asked while looking at the hand.

Tatsuki turned to face Orihime and said, "No, no, not a bit. Well, when I think this is why I lost the championship, it _does_ hurt a _little_."

The dark orange haired girl smiled and nodded her head and said, "But getting second place in Nationals means you're the second strongest girl in Japan. Tatsuki-chan, you're incredible."

"No I'm not." Tatsuki said with a little blush.

"No, you are incredible!" Orihime ran a bit forwards while saying that.

Tatsuki followed the girl and they both looked at the river that was a few feet away from them.

Orihime stretched out her arms and said, "It's been a long time since we came here."

"Yeah, 'cause we only come in autumn each year."

"Did I tell you?" Orhime walked a few steps closer to the river. "My brother used to be really good at getting dragonflies to land on his finger. He'd point his finger up to the sky and right away, they'd swoop in and land. I...loved it because it seemed like a magic. So...I wanted to do it, too. But I never could..."

Flashbacks came to Tatsuki of the one day that she almost attacked Orihime. "This time, I'll protect you."

The sky was darkening quickly. Tastuki interrupted the small silence and said, "Did you say you're going to a relatives' place next week?"

"Yeah."

"Ichigo said he's going on vacation next week, too. As well as Tsukiko. I...wasn't able to be number one, but..." Orihime looked at her, "...but I never thought, 'I shouldn't have tired.' Even if it doesn't turn out well...I think there're things you only understand after you try the best you can. So...So...if there's something you've decided, don't hesitate to go. But in exchange...I'm...I'll...be waiting here."

Tatsuki looked at Orihime and continued, "So...So..."

Fireworks began to explode in the night sky. Their beautiful colors made the sky bright and livid.

"Good one!" Isshin shouted. In the back, Chad held Yuzu and Karin on his shoulders.

"We want better!" The two girls shouted.

"What a view!" Keigo said.

"They're really pretty." Mizuiro stated.

"Wow their beautiful." Tsukiko said as her eyes shined with excitement. Ichigo looked at her; he smiled and looked up at the sky.


	22. Happy Birthday

**Hey all! Here is another chapter! Yayz! Hope you all like it.**

Black-HunterXX** - I know huh. They are both dense to realize it. Their stubborn enough, but who knows, we might see a change in that soon. Thanks for the review!!  
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Chapter 22: Happy Birthday

Days had passed and it was now finally August seventh, also known as Tsukiko's birthday. It was about five in the morning when Tsukiko's cell phone rang. Her ring tone shattered the quiet that surrounded her room as she moved slowly and groggily to look at the clock.

"Who the hell is calling me this early?" Her voice clearly showed that she was still asleep. She picked up her cell phone and answered, "Hello?"

"Happy birthday lil sis!!" A male voice screamed. Tsukiko had to push the phone away from her ear, not wanting to become deaf.

"Kai?"

"Yup 'tis I, your handsome older brother, wishing you a happy birthday, even though here I'm a day early. You know with the whole time zone difference."

He was right about the time difference. From California and Japan, there was a 16-17 hour time zone difference.

"Did you have to wake me up this early? It is my birthday and I am in summer vacation. Can't I sleep in?!"

"Nope!" He said with a cheerful voice. "So what do you plan on doing today?"

'What am I going to do today?' She thought in her head. "I guess anything that comes up. I like to be spontaneous once in a while."

"Well hope you have fun. Mika wishes you a happy birthday. Gotta go kiddo. Love you!"

"Thanks and tell Mika I said hi and thank you. Love you too. Take care."

And with that ending line, the conversation was over. Tsukiko placed the phone back to the little table that was next to her bed. She lied back down and sighed. She knew that sleep was not going to come back to her, so she got up and did her morning routines.

After brushing her teeth, she went back to her room and walked to her drawer and took out a black sports bra and a pair of shorts. She quickly changed out of her purple pajama bottoms and blue top and placed on the clothes that she picked. She walked out of her room, barefoot, and went down to the living room.

Once she arrived, she walked to her couch and was about to take a seat when she suddenly stopped. Luna was there, fast asleep. Tsukiko smiled and left the room quietly. She decided to go down to her basement and do some last minute training.

Tsukiko walked down the steps and turned on the lights. She smiled and walked to where the radio was at. She placed one of her mixed CDs into the radio/CD player and began her work out. For at least three hours, she stretched and worked on her fighting styles. Since Tsukiko had managed to learn her defensive and offensive attacks with her Zanpakutou, she believed that it would be best to practice without them.

The three hours passed fast and soon, she stopped. She walked out of the basement and headed straight to one of the bathrooms. After closing the door, she walked towards the shower and turned the knobs. Water sprayed from the nozzle head of the shower and steam began to fog up the mirrors.

In about thirty-four minutes, Tsukiko finished her shower, wrapped a towel around her body and walked to her room. She picked out some clothes from her closet. She picked out a pair of black flare jeans and a purple top. From her drawer she took out panties, a bra and socks. She changed after drying her body and grabbed her cell phone and some money out of her wallet and headed downstairs to her kitchen.

She ate a quick breakfast, consisting of Fruit Loops cereal, and then went to the living room. She grabbed her punk styled Chucks, put them on and walked to her door. She took a quick glance at the clock noting that it was now nine-twenty one. After that, she left the house and wandered about.

The whole day, she was receiving text messages from friends wishing her a Happy Birthday. She replied to all of them saying "Thank You!" Tsukiko was wandering about everywhere, from Urahara's shop, where she received may hugs, some money from Urahara, and a cake made especially from Tessai, to the park. But right now, she was at the cemetery.

Silence was all over her as she walked. The only noise that could be heard was birds chirping and the occasional animal. She looked at the names of all the people on their stones and finally had reached her destination.

" Takeshi Ryuu and Mizuki. Loving parents and friends. May they rest in peace." Tsukiko read aloud.

She got on her knees and began her prayer. "Hey Mom and Dad. Well, today I am finally sixteen. I made it." She laughed. "I miss having you guys around, but I know that you both are happy right now up in heaven. Everything has been fine, made some new friends and all."

She remained silent for a few seconds, but then continued. "Kai is doing fine. He woke me up at five in the morning. That bugger is still the same. And Mika is doing fine as well. Oh, remember the dance studio I used to go to? Well, I got a job there and they recently kinda fired me since I hadn't graduated yet from high school. Kazumi was kind enough to give me a rather large final paycheck. I put it all in the bank and saved it for something that I might need.

"I miss you guys so much." Tsukiko paused and looked at her watch. It was about two in the afternoon. "I should get going now and prepare for tomorrow. I have to go to a rescue mission. You know about that Shinigami stuff I told you about. Well, I have to rescue one of my friends from being executed. Take care Mom, Dad. Love you both and I'll come back to visit soon."

She kissed her finger tip and touched the memorial stone. She got off her knees and stood up. She walked down the large hill that lead back down and headed straight home. Along the way, her phone went off. This time, it was a phone called. She flipped the phone open and answered,

"Hello?"

"Happy Birthday, Tsukiko." The voice on the other line said.

"Thank you very much Ichigo!"

"No problem. What have you been doing all day?"

"Well let's see. Got a wake up call from my brother Kai, trained for three hours, walked around and went to Urahara's, and lastly went to visit my parents at the cemetery. Now I think I'm gonna head home."

"Ah sounds like you had a busy day. Home? So that means you're free as of now?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Come over my place. Be here in like as soon as possible ok?"

"Uh sure. I'll be there in like ten minutes."

"Great! See you soon."

"Bye." She hanged up her phone. She rubbed her neck and gave off a laugh. Now she had something to do instead of just being at home.

Tsukiko walked the streets of Karakura town for a few minutes until she arrived at the Kurosaki's clinic/house. She walked up the door and knocked. After waiting for a few seconds, the door was opened.

"Ah Tsukiko-sensei! Happy Birthday!" Yuzu said as she tackled the sixteen year old in a hug.

"Thanks Yuzu."

"Come in. Come in. We've been waiting for you for a while now?"

"'We'?" Tsukiko questioned as she took off her shoes. Yuzu just simply nodded her head and gestured her to follow. Yuzu lead her to the kitchen door and as soon as she opened it, there was a yell.

"Surprise!"

Tsukiko's eyes were wide. There stood the entire Kurosaki family. Hanging from the ceiling was a banner that said "Happy Birthday" and on the table were a chocolate cake and two gifts.

"No way, you guys didn't?" Tsukiko said.

"Of course we did." Karin said as she walked towards Tsukiko and hugged her. She let go and said, "Besides, it was Ichigo's idea."

Tsukiko looked at Ichigo amazed. Ichigo stood there with a light blush on his cheek. He looked at Karin as if he was saying "I'm gonna kill you" and then walked towards Tsukiko.

He gave her a hug, one which she loved and he said, "Happy birthday. Are you surprised?"

"Surprised? More like shocked! Thank you so much Ichigo!" She told him as she hugged him even more.

The hug lasted much longer, until a sudden shadow appeared over the two. Ichigo was suddenly pulled back from the hug and thrown against the wall. Tsukiko looked at Ichigo with wide eyes and was suddenly engulfed in a spine-breaking hug. Isshin was hugging Tsukiko like if there was no tomorrow.

"Tsukiko, my soon-to-be daughter-in-law, happy birthday!" He shouted with pride and joy.

'Daughter-in-law?!' Tsukiko screamed in her head. "Th-thank you, Isshin. But could yo-"

"Let her go, old man! You're cutting off her oxygen!" Karin and Ichigo screamed at their father.

He reluctantly did so and Tsukiko regained her breath. Once she was back to normal, she walked and stood besides Yuzu as she watched Karin and Ichigo fight their father. Tsukiko had to admit, just watching them fight made her smile.

After a few minutes, the three finally remembered that they did have a guest whose birthday that they were celebrating. They all quickly apologized and went back to the mini party that they had. Tsukiko smiled and enjoyed herself.

The remainder of the day was spent playing video games and watching movies and eating some of Yuzu's delicious cooking. It was around six o' six when she looked at the clock. She was enjoying the movie _The Nightmare Before Christmas_ with Ichigo by her side when the lights suddenly turned off. A glow came from the kitchen and out came Yuzu, Karin, and Isshin.

Tsukiko's eyes widened, even though she had already seen the cake, the surprise of them suddenly turning off the light and candles glowing excited her. She looked at Ichigo and he grinned. He got up from his seat and extended his hand out to Tsukiko. She smiled at him and grabbed his hand. He lifted her off her seat and stood next to her.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Tsukiko, happy birthday to you!"

Tears threatened to fall from her eyes. She looked at everyone around her and smiled. She faced her cake and breathed in and as soon as there was enough air, she breathed out, blowing out the candles. Everyone, except Yuzu who was holding the cake, clapped. They all walked back to the kitchen and cut the cake.

After enjoying the cake, Tsukiko announced that she had to leave. It was already seven and she wanted to get some sleep before going to Urahara's. She thanked everyone by giving them hugs.

"I'll walk you home since it looks like you need help with carrying the two gifts." Ichigo said after he had received his hug.

"Oh, thanks!"

After saying goodbye, the two walked towards her house. The night was clear and the stars were bright. The two were enjoying the night sky and walked in a somewhat slow pace.

"Thank you so much, Ichigo. It was so much fun." Tsukiko said while breaking the silence.

"No problem, Tsukiko. I'm glad that you had fun."

The two continued talking as soon as they got to Tsukiko's house. She asked if he wanted to come in and he did. The two took off their shoes and went to the living room. There Tsukiko found a card that had her name on it. She opened it and there was a drawing of Luna. All around it said "Happy Birthday". Tsukiko smiled at the card and reminded herself to thank her.

Ichigo looked at the card and smiled. He placed down the gifts and said, "You ready for tonight?"

Tsukiko sighed and said, "Yeah I'm ready for tonight. That's why I wanted to be home early to get some sleep."

"That's really smart," Ichigo said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I should probably do that too." He then looked at her while saying, "You gonna open your gifts?'

"Oh right!" She grabbed the first box that was wrapped in light green paper and blue poka dots. It was from Karin, Yuzu, and Isshin. She removed the wrapping and opened the box. Inside was new clothing, a blue and black pinstripe mini skirt, a black shirt that had all sort of neon colored poka dots, and lastly the latest volume of _Negima!_, the current manga that Tsukiko was reading.

"Remind me to thank you family once again! Yay new reading material!" She said happily as she hugged the box with all her new items.

Ichigo laughed and said, "Open mine now."

Tsukiko placed the box down and nodded. She proceeded with opening the gift given to her by Ichigo. The box was wrapped in red paper and on top was a black bow. Carefully removing the paper she opened a rather large box. She gasped at what she saw inside. Her hands brought out a black jewelry box that had a silver crescent moon and lots of mini sliver stars.

"Open it." He whispered in her ear.

And she did with a blush. A soft melody began to play and she recognized it as the song _A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes_. But it wasn't that that now surprised her. Inside was a silver necklace that had a star and crescent moon connected to one another. It was one of the most beautiful things that she had ever seen. She loved it.

"Thank you so much, Ichigo! It's beautiful!" Tsukiko told him as she engulfed him in a giant loving hug. He hugged her back with the same force and gave her a kiss on the forehead before saying,

"I'm glad that you like it."

She blushed and placed the beautiful necklace back in the box and closed it carefully. She looked back at him and said, "How were you able to get this?"

Ichigo smirked and said, "That's a secret that I shall never say." He looked at the clock and decided that it was best for him to leave to be able to get some sleep and for her as well.

Tsukiko nodded her head and stood up, him following and leading him to the door where he put his shoes on and fixed his jacket.

"Hope you had fun at my place and all."

"I did! Thank you, Ichigo. You have no idea how happy I am." She told him with a large smile. She leaned closed to him and kissed him right at the corner of his lips. Ichigo blushed at this and rubbed the back of his head with his left arm.

"You're welcome. Well, goodnight and I'll be seeing you in a couple of hours." He said with the blush still visible.

"Night and bye."

He left her house and Tsukiko closed her door. She grabbed her two gifts and walked up to her room. Grabbing her new clothes, she placed them inside her closet. With her new manga, she placed it on her desk and lastly, she grabbed the jewelry box and placed it on her vanity.

After taking a quick shower, she changed into her pajamas and went to bed. After lying down for five minutes, she knew that sleep wasn't going to come to her quickly. She got up and walked to the bathroom and found the one thing that she knew would knock her out. She grabbed the bottle of sleeping pills and took one tablet. She swallowed the small pill and then headed back to her room.

Tsukiko jumped on her bed and made herself comfy. Once she was under the covers, she began to feel the effects of the pill. Her eyes began to become drowsy and finally, she fell asleep.


	23. Dream a Dream

**As we all know, Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo. Any other characters belong to me. Ok people, me need help, I really want to change the title of the story but have no clue. If any of you guys have an idea, I would gladly appreciate it and you shall be my bestest buddy and get a free lolipop. Lol. Thanks!**

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Chapter 23: Dream a Dream

"Mommy, mommy look what I found!" A four year old Tsukiko said as she ran to her mother. Her hair was held up in high pig tails that bounced around as she ran. She wore a pink shirt, blue jean shorts and a pair of white sneakers that had become dirty since she was playing at a park. In her hands were white daisies.

"Wow those are beautiful, Tsukiko." Her mother, Mizuki said as she bent down to be at the same level as her daughter.

Takeshi Mizuki was extremely beautiful in Tsukiko's eyes. Her mother had waist length dark brown hair and hazel eyes. She was a petite woman who was currently wearing a dark blue jeans and a white shirt with a brown jacket over it. Tsukiko loved her mother and wished that she would become as beautiful as she was.

"Can we take them home with us, can we?" Tsukiko red eyes held excitement and hope, just to be able to take the daisies home.

Her mother nodded and said, "Yes we can take them home. Maybe you should give them to daddy."

"You're right mom! Let's go!" The two walked hand in hand back to the Takeshi residence.

"Hey daddy," a six year old Tsukiko said, who wore green shorts and a white shirt that had an orange star right in the center. Her hair now was down and passed her shoulders a bit.

"Yes baby girl?" Her father, Takeshi Ryuu questioned. Tsukiko's father was a tall man that was about 6'1 inches tall. He had black spiky hair on top of his head and brown eyes. He was a muscular man and was well in shape. He was currently wearing black pants and a black muscle shirt for it was a Sunday afternoon. Even when dressed like that, he looked handsome in her eyes.

Tsukiko got on top of the couch and sat herself on her father's lap. Ryuu had an amusing smile just by watching her climb onto his lap.

"Well," she began as she placed her index finger in her mouth and began to bite on it. "Can you teach me to defend myself?"

Her father's eyes went from being amused to confused and concerned. "Why do you need me to teach you to defend yourself? Are people picking on you at school?"

"Kids are calling me a demon and some of the boys at school would push me around. They're being mean to me and they make me cry." She nervously told him. "They make fun of me because my eyes are different."

Ryuu hugged his daughter and said, "You should be proud of your eyes because it makes you unique. And if you want, I can teach you to defend yourself."

"Really daddy?" She asked as her eyes began to water with tears.

He grinned and said, "Of course! Anything for my girl! C'mon let's start before your mother comes back and finds out and tries to kill me."

Tsukiko laughed. "You're funny daddy."

A seven and a half year old Tsukiko was at the park, playing on her own since not many kids wanted to play with her. Her black hair reached her shoulders, touching her green shirt. She work dark green pants and had on black shoes. She was lying on the ground, looking at the clouds when a shadow loomed over her.

"Hi! Whatcha doing?" A cheerful voice said.

Tsukiko shaded her eyes to look at the person over her. It was a girl that had long brown hair and bright green eyes. The girl was wearing a light pink shirt and had on white shorts. Pink shoes adorned her feet.

"Are you talking to me?" Tsukiko asked with a confused look on her face.

"Of course! I'm Aichi Hitomi. Who are you and do you want to play?"

Tsukiko sat up and said, "I'm Takeshi Tsukiko. Yeah let's play!"

Tsukiko and Hitomi ran towards the slides. They were playing all morning and ate lunch together. As they were eating their food, when Hitomi asked,

"Is that your real eye color?"

Tsukiko said, "Yup! My mommy and daddy said that my eyes are pretty and unique."

"They are! Hey, how bout we play again tomorrow?"

Tsukiko smiled a large smile and said, "Yeah that sounds fun!"

"Oi, Tsukiko! Come here for a minute." A young male voice called out.

"What is it, Kai-nii?" A now nine year old Tsukiko asked her brother. She was wearing a pair of blue jean capris and a red shirt. Her hair was in a pony tail.

Her brother, Takeshi Kai who was currently twenty, was lying on his bed. He wore black jeans and had on a blue t-shirt. His hair was black like their father's but he had their mother's hazel eyes.

"Come and lay down besides me." He told her.

"Ok Kai-nii."

Tsukiko walked over to her brother and lied down next to him. It was him who began to teach her music and such. When she was eight years old, she walked in on her brother playing the guitar and had suddenly become interested. Not only that, but he helped her to learn how to fight.

"How have you been, kiddo? It's been a while since we have been able to hang like this huh?" He asked.

"I've been good. It has been. And I've been seeing more ghosts lately." Tsukiko began to see ghost when she had barely turned eight. It frightened her at first, but she noticed that they would just say hi to her and leave.

"Yeah me too. Weird ain't it." Kai, himself saw ghosts too. But he chose to ignore them completely, unlike Tsukiko.

"Mm-hmm. How is your girlfriend, Mika-chan?"

"Mika is doing well. But I have a serious question for you. Are kids still picking on you because of your eyes?"

Tsukiko nodded her head and said with a grin, "They just won't leave me alone. But with all the moves you and dad have taught me, I have been able to fight back. And my best friend, Hitomi helps me out too!"

Kai got up from lying down and patted her head. "That a girl! You are learning well from the master!"

Tsukiko laughed and said, "I thought daddy is the master?"

"Was. The term is was. I have replaced that old man."

"Old man huh?" They heard a voice from the door.

"Run!" The two Takeshi siblings shouted and ran away from their father.

Tsukiko was now eleven years old and in class. She wore the regular sailor outfit uniform and had her hair in a pony tail. Class that finally ended for the day and she was about to leave the campus when she heard something that caught her attention.

"Look, it's the princes." A girl said as she and her friends gathered around a girl that had short, dark orange looking hair.

"Why don't we shave her head this time?" Another one said.

"Please leave me alone." The terrified girl pleaded.

"Nope!"

All the girls had ganged up on her and were pulling on her hair. This made Tsukiko extremely angry for they were tormenting someone because of their looks. She ran towards the group and pushed the girls away. She shoved them away from the frightened girl and she stood in between the two groups.

"Look who showed up. Demon girl."

"Leave her alone." Tsukiko said calmly.

"No." The leader stubbornly said.

"Leave or else."

"Or else what?"

"This!" Tsukiko punched the girl right on her left cheek. The other girls looked at their fallen leader and decided to leave, not wanting to get injured themselves. Taking their fallen leader, they ran.

"Orihime!" A voice shouted out from a distance.

Tsukiko turned back to look at the girl now known as Orihime and said, "You alright?"

Orihime nodded and said that she was now fine. A girl ran up to them and instantly came to her side. The girl had black hair that was short and spiky.

"Thanks for defending Orihime." The spiky haired girl said. "I'm Arisawa Tatsuki by the way. And this is Inoue Orihime."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Takashi Tsukiko."

"I like your eye color." Orihime said.

Tsukiko was in shock. No one had ever complimented her eyes before. Only her family and Hitomi.

"Th-thank you. Um, do you guys wanna go to the park or something with me? You can meet my best friend there."

The two girls nodded and their friendship had begun.

A twelve year old Tsukiko who was wore black jeans, a blue shirt, and black chucks walked along the sidewalk heading to Hitomi's house. She was minding her own business, fixing her hair back into a pony tail, when she saw something run past her. Her eyes widened and they followed to a man. Well he looked more like a nineteen year old. She saw him for a second and then he was gone.

It was five in the evening now and she was finally heading home. She had decided to go walking in hopes of finding out who that man was. Sitting on a bench a few feet away from her she saw the same man. He had brown hair and brown eyes and he was wearing what looked like a kimono and a sword was on his left hip. She walked passed him and said,

"You know, it's a bit early for Halloween."

It seemed as if the man ignored her but she walked right in front of him and said her previous sentence.

The man looked at her and waved his hand around. Her eyes followed the hand until she got annoyed and grabbed it. His eyes widened and took his hand back as he finally said, "You can see me."

"No duh, Sherlock I can see ya. Seriously, why are you wearing a kimono? Is that a real katana?"

"This isn't a kimono girly! It's a shihakushō! It's what we Shinigamis wear as a uniform! And yes it's real!"

She looked at him curiously and said, "Shinigami? So does that mean you're a ghost too?"

"'Too?'" He asked. "Yes, I am. I wonder if you have seen any Hollows."

Tsukiko took a seat next to him and asked, "Hollows? What's a Hollow?"

He sighed and began to explain what a Hollow was and while he was at it, explained what a Shinigami is.

"Wow that's rather interesting. Well, Shinigami-san, I'll see you later." Tsukiko said as she got up from her seat.

"It's not 'Shinigami-san'. It's Mishima Daisuke."

"I'm Takeshi Tsukiko. Well bye Daisuke-san, see you around."

Two weeks later, she was leaving school when she found Daisuke at the gate entrance. She nodded a hello to him and he said hi. The two had gotten pretty close and became friends. She would be questioning him about his Shinigami work and the place, Soul Society, where he was from. While he would ask her questions about school life and her life in general.

His cell phone rang and he said, "Sorry gotta go. A Hollow is near by. Promise me that you will not follow."

Tsukiko had her hand behind her back and crossed her fingers. "I promise." She lied.

Daisuke nodded and left running towards the Hollow. She eagerly followed as soon as she could. Once she found him, she hid from his view only to be shocked by the creature in front of him. It had white mask and the monster was ferocious. It screamed and she instantly recognized the scream. She had heard them before when she was younger and it frightened her.

Daisuke fought the monster and was winning when the monster pulled a dirty trick. It was about to hit Daisuke in a dangerous angle that would certainly kill him.

Not thinking Tsukiko screamed out, "Daisuke! Watch out for the tail!"

He looked towards Tsukiko but instantly put his attention back to the monster. He dodged it when he screamed, "I told you not to follow me! You can get hurt!"

"That she can." A malicious voice said behind Tsukiko. She fearfully turned around and came face to face with the monster. The beast used its tail and hit her, causing her to fly towards a wall. The force of the attack and hitting the wall caused her to break her left arm.

She cried in pain as she held her broken arm. Watching her cry out, Daisuke became furious. He ran towards the monster and hit him head on. He killed it with a strike of his Zanpakutou and then it was gone. As soon as the monster dematerialized, he ran towards Tsukiko and lifted her up. There was one place that he could take her where she can get help. He ran in an unbelievable pace and arrived in front of a store.

Urahara Shoten was in front of him and he called out to the shop keeper. After hearing his name, the owner, Urahara Kisuke, walked out. He saw his client but what surprised him was the girl in his arms.

"Daisuke-kun, how do you know Tsukiko-chan?" He said as he urgently grabbed the crying girl from his arms.

"I am a friend of hers. Wait, how do _you_ know her?!" Daisuke asked Urahara.

"I am a friend of her parents. Does she know everything?"

Knowing what he meant, he nodded his head as a sign of yes. Urahara sighed as he placed the girl down on his futon and called an ambulance and afterwards calling her parents. When Urahara met Tsukiko for the first time, he knew that she had Shinigami powers from the beginning. He felt it leaking out of her body.

'Now we wait and see what time brings upon us.'

Two years had finally passed and now Tsukiko was with her family at a park. She had on black straight leg pants and a purple shirt. Her hair was now long and almost half way her back. Kai, now twenty-five, had finally married his girlfriend Mika. She had light brown hair and green eyes. Her parents were a bit older now, but still felt as if though they were young.

They were having the time of their lives being together when suddenly, the ground begun to shake. Tsukiko's eyes had widened in fright as she heard the growl of a Hollow.

'Hollow...' She thought, 'Where is Daisuke?'

Their parents began to get scared, as did Mika but not as scared as Tsukiko was from her past experiences. "Run!" screamed Kai. Kai, their parents, and Mika ran, but she stayed put.

'Where is he?' She wouldn't stop thinking over and over. Red eyes were searching the park, but also keeping watch as the Hollow got closer and closer. Then out of no where, Daisuke had appeared before her in a flash, as usual.

"Run Tsukiko, I got this." He shouted out to her and she nodded and began to run. She knew that Daisuke would be able to handle the Hollow but suddenly, the Hollow was behind her family.

"NO!" She screamed, but it was too late. In one swipe, both her mother and father were gone. Kai and Mika barely made it out. Shock filled her body as she stood still, not moving.

The male Shinigami saw what happened and instantly went back to fighting the Hollow. But he was struck across the chest and his blood spilled out of his body quickly.

"Daisuke!" Tsukiko screamed as she ran towards the light brown haired Shinigami. Once she arrived and got on her knees, she saw that he was losing blood too much.

"Tsukiko, do you want to help your family? Protect the living and the dead?" He asked her in a soft voice.

"Yes, yes I do. Tell me what to do?" She whispered.

"Take my Zanpakutou and drive it through your heart." He told her as he held out his weapon. She grabbed his sword and right when the Hollow was about to attack, had rammed it through her heart.

Dust appeared all over her body as she began to change. She looked at herself as soon as the dust settled down. She wasn't wearing the normal shihakushō, like Daisuke, but had a different one. Her kimono was in the form of a halter, the normal hakama pants were now knee high and tight, and her shoes were ballet styled flats. On her hands were black cotton-like material, similar to her kimono top and on top had a metal plate. On her left hip was her own Zanpakutou.

Doing what her instincts had told her, she ran towards the Hollow with her Zanpakutou out. The blade was silver and had a dark purple hilt while the guard was in the shape of a crescent moon. She swung the blade and by luck had cut the Hollows mask in half. As the beast dematerialized, she placed the Zanpakutou back in its rightful place and ran towards Daisuke.

As Daisuke watched her run towards him he looked at his body and thought, 'I still have my powers? How can that be possible...I was meaning to lend her my powers, but I guess she finally accessed the ones she owns.'

"Daisuke...how-what can I do to help you?" Tsukiko asked as she was once again on his side.

"There's nothing you can do now. I have to move on...but I want to give you something that will now help you along your new journey." With that said, he placed two fingers onto her forehead gave her any useful information.

"Arigato Daisuke-kun." Tsukiko said, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Please send me back to the Soul Society and don't forget to send your parents as well."

"Hai." She removed the Zanpakutou once again from it's sheathe and with the hilt, she pressed it onto his forehead. "Bye Daisuke...I'll miss you." And with that, he was back to where he belonged.

Tsukiko turned around and walked towards where the bodies of her parents were at.

"Mom...Dad." Her voice caused them to look at her and sadly smile. "Mom, dad, I love you both so much." She hugged them both and said, "It's time for you to go to a better place. I'll miss you."

With that, she did the same thing to them as she had done to Daisuke. They left to the Soul Society. All that was left was three black butterflies and as soon as they fluttered away, she passed out, returning back to her human self.

Two months had passed by and now Takeshi Kai was having a problem. Before the death of his parents, he had bought a house in California with his wife Mika. But now that their parents died, Kai didn't want to leave Tsukiko alone in Karakura.

"C'mon Kai, I am old enough and responsible. Besides, Urahara-san can always come and check on me."

"Tsukiko, I don't want to leave you alone. After all that happened and you with your Shinigami work, I don't want to leave you with all that responsibility. Besides how are you going to live on your own without money?"

"I just got a job at the dance studio I used to go to. Kazumi was nice enough to get me one and you said so yourself that you can send me money. Urahara kindly said that he would too."

Kai sighed in defeat. Everything Tsukiko said was true.

"Alright. But I'll be checking in with you _a lot_!"

Tsukiko screamed in happiness and hugged her brother as she kept on saying thank you countless of times.

Tsukiko now had the house to herself and Urahara would always come to check up on her. One day he came over and asked,

"Tsukiko-chan, now that you're a Shinigami, how would you like if I was to train you?"

Tsukiko looked at the man interested. How is it that he would help her? It wouldn't be possible, unless _he_ was a Shinigami. Tsukiko agreed to the training and then started her own personal hell.

Urahara decided that it would be best to teach her the proper techniques of fighting with a katana. Her last year of middle school had consisted of work, training, school, and slaying Hollows.

"I SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT BOYS AND SCHOOL AND JUNK, NOT THIS!!" Tsukiko screamed out when she was running away from Urahara. She was now fifteen and had her long hair cut in various layers, including the bangs that covered her left eye.

"Well you should be but we also want you to learn the name of your Zanpakutou." Urahara told her as he swung his own Zanpakutou at her.

"You're insane!"

"Why thank you!"

Thirty minutes of this had finally gotten Tsukiko to learn the name of her blade.

"Bewitch, Kuro Maho!" Her once silver katana broke in two and was now a pair of sais. The sais were pure silver and the hilt of the weapons were pure black and had a purple ribbon wrapped around it all the way to the guard. The guard was silver and looked as a U but the ends curved out.

Urahara smiled and continued fighting her, making her get used to her new weapon. After another hour, the two stop training and he explained to her that this new weapon was the Shikai release of her Zanpakutou. Weeks had passed and when Tsukiko trained again with Urahara or fought against a Hollow, she took notice that her Zanpakutou remained as sais. She liked the fact that they remained how they were for she liked them and it made it easier for her to fight.

Tsukiko was walking to Karakura High with her best friend Aichi Hitomi. She found out after becoming a Shinigami that Hitomi can too see Shinigami, Hollows and ghosts but can also sense them as well. Thus the two became a team. Having the uniform she hated and her leggings and tie, she and Hitomi walked to her classroom only to find a new student. But this was no ordinary student for Tsukiko had seen her as a Shinigami.

The day had passed and Kurosaki Ichigo, an acquaintance of hers, finally came to class and was in shock of seeing the new student, now known as Kuchiki Rukia. Tsukiko watched as Rukia talked to Ichigo outside and saw him become a Shinigami. This certainly caught her attention.

Suddenly, everything became dark. Tsukiko was now her sixteen year old self, but she couldn't see a thing. A light floated towards her and she had to squint her eyes just to see what it was.

In front of her were her parents; they looked the same as the day when they passed away.

"Tsukiko!" Her mother ran towards her and engulfed her in a hug. Tsukiko was in shock but happily hugged her mother back. As soon as her mother released her, her father hugged her next.

"You have certainly grown to be a young woman." Her father said as he patted her back.

"Thanks dad."

"We know that you're about to go somewhere where your life can be in danger. But fear not, for we shall be with you no matter what." Her mother said in a soft voice.

"Right. But we have to go now honey, and you're about to wake up." Her father said with a smile.

"What do you mean wake up?" Tsukiko asked confused.

They simply laughed and each took a turn to kiss her on her forehead. "We love you sweetie."

"I love you too, Mom and Dad."


	24. Leaving

**Another chapter! Yay!**

**Black-HunterXX: I'm glad that you think it's getting good. Makes me feel all happy and warm inside. **

**Disclaimer: Plot, characters,and storyline belong Tite Kubo. Any other character belongs to me.**

* * *

Chapter 24: Leaving

Tsukiko gasped as she awoke from her slumber. Her right hand immediately went towards her heart and with her left grabbed her cell phone, noting that it was midnight. She dreamt of her life; of everything she held dear to her from her past. Tears threatened to fall from her eyes and she got off from her bed and walked towards her bathroom. She wet her face with water looked at herself.

"Wow. I didn't expect that to happen. Might as well get ready and leave early."

Tsukiko brushed her teeth and did everything she would normally do in the mornings. She walked back to her room and got out a pair of long back sweats that had a flower on her left side of her waist and put on a green shirt and put a black hoodie on top.

She walked towards her vanity and combed her hair when she took notice the jewelry box that Ichigo gave her. She opened it and immediately music filled her room. She grabbed the beautiful necklace and placed it around her neck. She smiled in happiness and continued her duties.

She grabbed a small messenger bag and began to put anything that she would need. She placed her keys, cell phone, wallet, and lastly her iPod and then began to look for Luna.

"Luna," she called out and walked towards the living room. There, she found the little plush dog waking up.

"Oh, Tsukiko. Is it time to leave?" She said as she rubbed her beady eyes.

Tsukiko didn't say anything but walked to her, lifted her up and hugged her. "Thank you so much for the little card you made me. I loved it."

"Glad you liked it." Luna replied with a smile.

"Now lets head on to Urahara's!"

Tsukiko and Luna, who was on Tsukiko's shoulder, walked in silence to Urahara's store/home. About halfway, Luna noticed the necklace around Tsukiko's neck.

"Pretty necklace! Where did you get it?"

"Thanks and Ichigo got it for me for my birthday." Tsukiko said with a blush at the end.

Luna smirked and asked, "Is he finally your boyfriend?"

Tsukiko madly blushed and said too quickly, "No, we're just friends!"

The dog simply said, "Right, for now."

"Jeez, why does everyone keep saying that?! But let's hurry up and get over there. I'm getting a bit freaked just walking around this late since its freakin' quiet."

The two walked quickly to Urahara's shop. Outside was Yoruichi, watching the night sky, when she noticed the two walking up to the shop.

"You're early, Tsukiko." The cat said to the teen.

"Yeah, I had a strange wake up call so I decided to come early and perhaps have a little practice before the others come."

"Well, go right ahead in. Urahara should be in there along with the Tessai."

"Thanks." Tsukiko was about walk inside when the cat said,

"By the way, nice necklace."

"Oh, thank you."

Tsukiko walked inside and before she removed her shoes, she told Luna that she could take over her body for a while.

'I hope the necklace stays on me as a Shinigami.' Tsukiko thought as she reached for the pill inside of Luna. Once she grasped it, she popped it in her mouth and out she came in her Shinigami self. She looked at Luna and took notice that the necklace wasn't on her body. She touched her own neck and sighed in happiness. There it was on her neck.

"Well Luna, you can hang here and wait for the others or you can come with me?" Tsukiko said as she walked towards a removable surface that lead to the underground room.

"I'll wait up here. Maybe hang out with that cat."

"Alright then. See you in a bit."

Tsukiko removed the tile and placed it next to the opening. She looked down, whistled, and just jumped down. The air collided with her hair, waving it around as she was falling. Closing her eyes, she waited for her stop and landed about four meters before hitting the floor.

She sighed and wiped her forehead as if she was removing any sweat. She walked towards the center of the room and closed her eyes. She breathed in and out heavily; everything that she had learned over the course of the past few weeks flashed in her head.

"Tsukiko," a female voice spoke.

Tsukiko opened her eyes and saw Kuro Maho in front of her. She smiled and said hi.

"Are you ready?"

She placed her right hand on her hip and smirked, "You bet I am. After all that training, I am ready."

"That's good. Perhaps when you return, we can begin working on your bankai." Kuro Maho said with a smile. The magician looked at the girl's neck and noticed the silver necklace. She walked over to Tsukiko and touched it. "What a beautiful necklace. Who gave it to you?"

Tsukiko blushed and looked away as she said one word, "Ichigo."

Kuro Maho smirked and said, "Ah him. When are you going to admit that you like him?"

"When you charm this to not fall or break and when you teach me some spell or something?"

"OK!"

"Wait, what?"

Kuro Maho placed her right hand over the necklace and chanted words in Latin. A light purple glow emitted from her hands and then vanished. "There you go! And with a spell, maybe I can teach you one at Soul Society. Gotta figure out the terrain and how strong people are over there. Now are you going to admit it?"

Tsukiko stared at her with wide eyes. Kuro Maho smirked and said, "Well?"

"Fine, I like Kurosaki Ichigo. Are you happy?!" Tsukiko said with a glare.

"Yup! Now what are you going to work on?" Kuro Maho asked with a smile on her face.

Tsukiko scratched her head and said, "I'm not sure. How about you fight against me in the air or something?"

"That sounds good. Ok let's go!" In a flash, Kuro Maho was up in the air. Tsukiko sighed and bended her knees and jumped up in the air. The two faced one another; Tsukiko pulled out her sais from her back as Kuro Maho summoned a katana. The two waited for a few seconds and ran towards one another.

Blades crashed upon another. Tsukiko jumped back after the first assault and struck with her left arm towards the magician's right shoulder. Kuro Maho blocked the attack, but didn't take notice of Tsukiko pulling back her right arm, reading to punch her. Tsukiko struck the spirit in the stomach, making Kuro Maho fall back.

The magician grinned, "Wanna play like that? No weapons!"

Tsukiko placed her sais back in their sheathe while saying, "Fine with me!"

They ran towards one another, punching and blocking. Tsukiko began to dodge punches that Kuro Maho tried landing on her. One after another, she blocked. Just concentrating on the punches, she forgot to realize one thing: Kuro Maho's legs. When Tsukiko blocked a punch with her arm, she was kicked on the head.

She fell to the ground and got back up. She rubbed her head and felt something wet. Blood was on her finger tips.

"Pay attention! Remember what I have taught you! Do not concentrate on only one thing! You must focus on your opponent's entire self." Kuro Kaho lectured as she tried to kick Tsukiko again.

Tsukiko dodged the attack and slid down to her knees and does a leg sweep to bring down Kuro Maho. The attack worked and Kuro Maho was now lying on her back. Tsukiko jumped up to the air and began descending down towards Kuro Maho, preparing to punch the magician.

All while the two was fighting, Ichigo was barely preparing himself to leave.

"Lessee..." He said as he opened his window. He sat on his bed wearing jeans and a yellow shirt with red sleeves. The words E Beautiful was written in blue and black. "I _think_ that's good enough."

Urahara's voice ran through the air as Ichigo remembered his instructions, "At one am, seven days from now, wait with your window open, please."

"I've got one hell of a bad feeling about this, though." Ichigo said with a serious face. His face demeanor changed to a calm one as he looked outside his window. "Nice breeze."

Something shined from a distance and it caught Ichigo's attention. Suddenly something came flying towards Ichigo and it went past his face, slamming onto his closet door. It was crashed and red liquid came out from it.

Ichigo turned around as he said, "What's that?! What the..."

The liquid dripped from the door down to the floor. A message was forming as a dark voice said,

"Cometh immediately to the front of the Urahara Store."

Ichigo screamed. He was freaked out since it looked like blood and because of the mess. "What the hell's that bastard doing to my room?! This looks like someone's dying message at the scene of a massacre! That better disappear!"

He stopped screaming as he noticed that there was another message.

"What? More message?"

The voice once again spoke, "P.S.: Anyone who sees this and thinks something ordinary like 'It looks like a dying message'..." Suddenly Urahara's voice appeared saying, "has no talent for comedy."

"Shut the hell up!" Ichigo screamed as he threw a pillow at the message.

All was silent as Ichigo walked out of his front door. He closed it behind him and began to walk before stopping.

"See you...Yuzu...Karin...Pops."

"Good MORNING, Ichigo!" A loud male voice said and jumped off the roof of the house. Isshin came flying down, trying to tackle Ichigo, but Ichigo screamed and jumped a bit to the right. Isshin ended up hitting the ground, hard.

Blood fell from Isshin's head as he said, "You were able to dodge that attack; you are truly my son."

"W-What the hell're you doing?!" Ichigo screamed down to his father.

Isshin lifted his arm and raised an item in front of Ichigo as he said, "Before you leave, I have to give you this."

Ichigo grabbed the item as he said, "What's this dirty amulet for?"

"'Dirty'?! That's rude! It's an amulet your mom gave me a long time ago!" Isshin told his son as he stood up properly. "It's full of luck and good things."

"What're you doing?!" Ichigo screamed at his father. "I can't take this!"

"Of course not!" Isshin screamed right in his face. "Who'd give it to you?! Who'd give it to you?!"

Isshin calmed his yelling and said, "During your trip, I'm just lending it to you. When you're done, come bring it back to me. Hey! Where's your answer?!" He then went back to his shouting and said, "You better return it! If you lose it, I'll shave my beard!"

"S-Sure..." Ichigo said with a couple of sweat drops. He gripped the amulet in his hand and began walking away, "Okay then, I'll be back."

"Yeah!" Isshin said with a smile.

Rocks flew in the air as well as dust. Tsukiko stood up as she breathed heavily. Her face had a few scratches that were bleeding. Her arms were sore and her legs were tried. She finished her last few minutes of training when she felt someone's spirit energy.

'Chad must be here.' She turned to Kuro Maho and said, "Oi! I think we are done for now. People are starting to get here."

"Okay! Let me just heal your injuries." Kuro Maho said as she approached Tsukiko. "Sit down."

"Alright. Thanks."

Tsukiko sat on the floor as the magician began her healing. Muttering words in Latin, a light purple glow emitted from her hands and began healing the teen.

"Are you sure about doing this?" Kuro Maho asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. If I wasn't, I wouldn't have done all that training."

"Where is that mod soul of yours anyways?"

Luna sat in front of the shop next to Chad and close by Urahara. Chad was wearing black pants and had one a purple sleeveless shirt that had a single reddish/dark purple stripe next to his left shoulder. She was sitting down patiently when she saw Ichigo show up. She and Chad stood up.

"Oh, Kurosaki-san. You're right on time. Good, good." Urahara said.

"Hi Ichigo!" Luna smiled as she waved.

"Chad?! Why're you here?" Ichigo asked.

"Kuchiki Rukia...saved me once. I'm going too." The tall teen said.

"Huh? Wait...what?!" Ichigo said in total shock.

"What? They didn't tell you?" A new voice said and Ichigo turned to face the voice. Ishida Uryuu was wearing all white that had a blue stripe going down the center of his shirt. On his right hand was the same glove that he was practicing with. On his right, he held a bag.

"Ishida?!"

"I can't let it end with me losing to those Shinigamis. I'll go too." The Quincy said.

"Now we're all here." A female voice said. Ichigo turned, once again, and saw Orihime.

"Inoue?!"

Orihime bowed as she said, "Pleased to be working with you."

Ichigo freaked as he looked all around him. "Huh? Wai...hold on, wha-wha-what?! What is all this?!"

Yoruichi ran towards the group as she spoke. "He's pretty slow, isn't he?"

"Yoruichi/Yoruichi-san!" Both Luna and Orihime said.

"Boy! You can't say you haven't noticed the bubbling of power within these individuals. While you were training to regain your Shinigami powers...they were each training on their own, as well. Stop with the questions and bow your head to thank them." Yoruichi told him.

"A...A CAT TALKED!" Ichigo screamed in shock. "I-It's a cat! A cat! A ca...

"It's not a cat, it's Yoruichi-san." Orihime said as she was holding the black cat.

"I guess it is suprising." Ishida said.

"This is their first meeting..." Chad said.

"Okay, okay, enough of that!" Urahara said while he was clapping his hands to stop the yelling. "It's not good to stand around talking outside...so let's go inside first and we can meet up with Tsukiko-chan." Urahara said.

"But, Tsukiko-chan is here." Orihime said, while pointing towards Tsukiko.

"Nope! I'm Luna! Nice to meet ya." Luna said with a large smile.

"Oh. Nice to meet you too." Orihime said.

Everyone began walking inside. Orihime followed when a voice stopped her.

"Inoue." Ichigo said.

She stopped and said, "What?"

"How much have you heard? I mean...it's pretty dangerous."

"I promised Tatsuki-chan...that I'd follow you. And...that I'd come home no matter what." After saying that, she ran inside leaving Ichigo.

"W-Wow! Such a huge space under the store, it's so cool! It's like a secret base!" Orihime said with delight.

"Really?" Ichigo questioned.

Tessai suddenly appeared, grabbed Orihime's right hand as he cried with happiness saying, "What a magnificent reaction. I, Tessai, am deeply moved!"

"It was nothing."

CRASH!

Everyone turned towards the sound of the crash. They all saw dust settling in and two figures running.

"I'm gonna kill you for saying that!!" Tsukiko said as she chased Kuro Maho.

"I was just giving you some advice and all." Kuro Maho shouted as she dodged a swing from Tsukiko.

"Advice my ass!"

"Oi Tsukiko!" Ichigo shouted towards her.

Tsukiko and Kuro Maho stopped running and looked directly at the group in front of them. The group just sweat dropped at the two when Kuro Maho suddenly just said,

"Well gotta go!" and she disappeared.

"Dammit!"

"Okay, okay, your attention once again." Urahara clapped. "Now, here we go." He snapped his fingers and a gateway had suddenly appeared. "All right, this is the gate that leads to Soul Society. It's called the Senkai Gate, and it means 'realm-penetrating'. Ready? Please listen _very_ closely. But first..."

With the end of his cane, he slammed it against Ichigo head. Ichigo's Shinigami soul came out and everyone was amazed, except Tsukiko and Luna. Chad held Ichigo's body.

"Dammit, tell me when you're gonna do that!" Ichigo shouted.

"It just comes out clean, huh?" Ishida said.

"Hey, hey, so there's no more Kurosaki-kun in this Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked.

"Of course not." Tsukiko said to her.

"Don't talk about me like some jar of candy!" Ichigo said.

All Urahara did was laugh and say, "Let's continue. This gate is made by piling spirit exchangers atop the normal Senkai Gate."

"Spirit exchangers?" Ichigo asked.

"That's right. As you know, Soul Society is a world of souls. Entering it is impossible unless you're in soul form. However, the only two of you who can move around in soul form is Shinigami's Kurosaki-san and Tsukiko-chan. So we use an exchanger...to turn you into spirits and send you there."

"Basically..." Ishida began, "even without pulling out our souls, if we go through this gate..."

"Yes. You can enter Soul Society in your current state." Urahara said.

"Alright, we got it." Tsukiko and Ichigo said. "Now let's get sta-" They were both stopped by Urahara. Tsukiko moved back before getting hit by his cane. Ichigo, however, was not so lucky.

"However..." Ichigo had his back rubbed by Tsukiko and Orihime just looked at the two. "...the amount if time we can open this gate and stay connected to Soul Society is...at most four minutes."

"What?! Can we even make it in that time?!" Tsukiko said.

"Normally it's impossible."

"Huuuh?!" Ichigo said.

"This _is_ an unreasonable endeavor to begin with...the most we can stretch it is four minutes. If you can't reach the other side in that time...you kids will be permanently imprisoned in the space between Soul Society and the Living World."

"What should we do?" Orihime asked.

"The only one thing we can do is..." Tsukiko began.

"Go forward." Yoruichi said as the cat stood next to Tsukiko. "I told you...your heart and your soul are connected. The important thing is the state of your heart. The will to move forward. I will be your guide. Move forward, that and that alone. Only those who can do that will come with us."

"Quit yer sleeptalkin'." Ichigo said as he stepped forward. "That's the reason we gathered here."

"You understand, don't you, boy? If you lose, you'll never be able to return here."

"All I have to do is win, right?" Ichigo asked.

"Then we'll win!" Tsukiko said with a grin.

"Exactly." Yoruichi said.

Urahara and Tessai kneeled at the ends of the gate. Both prepared the chant and the gate began to glow.

"Everyone ready?" Urahara asked. "Please jump in simultaneously as it opens."

"Yeah!" Ichigo said.

"Here it goes!"

The gate glowed a white and everyone jumped in. Outside the gate, Urahara stood up and walked to face the gate. He moved his hand and touched the gate. Once he touched it, a red bolt of sparked hit his hand. He clenched his right fist, which was the same hand he touched the gate and thought,

'It's up to both of you, Kurosaki-san and Tsukiko-chan.'


	25. Arriving at Soul Society

**I want to apologize for not updating in a while. I was just busy getting my dorm room nice and comfy since I just moved in. Hope you guys like the chapter. Review please!**

**Black-HunterXX: **Thanks for thinking that the last chapter was cute. I'm really glad you thought that. Oh and I'm sorry for not updating. Hope this makes ya happy.

* * *

Chapter 25: Arriving at Soul Society

An alarm rang all over the Soul Society. Shingami's ran all over the placed as the listened to the alarm that ran.

"Incursion signal outside west wall! Sectors Three through Eight, switch to alert status! Repeat! Incursion outside the west wall! Sectors Three through Eight, switch to alert status!"

"What?" Renji questioned as he was hanging with one of his subordinates. "What the hell's going on?!"

Inside the gateway, all the teens and the only cat ran at a fast pace. Yoruichi led the group while Ichigo and Tsukiko were behind the cat while they were in front of Orihime who was a bit in front of Chad and Ishida. Behind them, the walls were beginning to close. Tsukiko glanced back for a second before looking back forwards as Ichigo looked toward his left side.

"What's going on? The wall's following us! The path we're running on is collapsing faster and faster!" Ishida said as he looked back as he kept running forwards.

Yoruichi then said, "If you have time to look back, move at a faster pace! If you get sucked into the Capturing Flow, you're done for!"

"What is the 'Capturing Flow'?" Orihime asked as she ran.

"It's the wall, Orihime." Tsukiko said as she began to pick up her pace.

The wall began to close at a much faster rate and by now, it was a couple of feet away from the group. Behind Ishida, a hand-like cloud had reached towards him. It had managed to grab the cape of his outfit, forcing him to a stop. He screamed.

"Ishida!" Ichigo shouted as he stopped running. "You idiot!" Ichigo reached for Zangetsu from his back as he continued shouting, "It's 'cuz of those stupid clothes you're wearing!"

"Wait!" Yoruichi said to him as the cat stopped running. "Don't use the Zanpakutou. The Capturing Flow arrests spirit entities. If you swing the Zanpakutou, you, too, will be ensnared!"

The other teens watched as Ishida was being dragged back by the wall. A dark hand gripped the back of Ishida's cape and ripped it. Chad pushed Ishida's head as he pulled off the cape, thus releasing him from the wall's grip.

"Than-" Ishida began to say, but was interrupted when Chad grabbed the collar of his outfit and lifted him over his shoulder.

"Here we go." Chad said as he took off running.

"Huh?! Put me down, Sado-kun! I can run on my own!" Ishida began saying but he took notice of the walls. "Hey, you guys...something...something's coming."

A light gleamed in the center of the wall that was closing in on them. Some sort of train looking object burst through the wall and was now following them.

"What is THAT?!" Ishida shouted.

"It's the Capturing Thrust! It's a cleaner that only appears once every seven days. Why did it have to show up NOW?!" Yoruichi said.

'Why didn't they plan this well?!' Tsukiko thought in her head.

"In any case, run! That thing is frighteningly fast!"

Ahead of them, a light appeared. It was the exit, the door way that would save them from getting killed.

"Hurry!" Tsukiko shouted to them as they all kept running faster. "We're almost at the exit!"

"It's not good! We can't outrun it!" Ishida said.

Orihime suddenly began to slow down until turned to make it look like she was running backwards. She placed her hands to where her flower clips were at.

"Hinagiku! Baigon! Lily! Sacred Tri-Link Shield! I reject!" Orihime shouted her command to send the pixie-like creatures to create a shield.

The cleaner touched the shield, creating a large blast. And it was that blast that sent everyone flying out of the door. Outside, a doorway opened and out came the teens. They crashed on the floor in an unknown area. The dust settled and Orihime looked around her.

"Are you guys okay?" She asked.

Everyone, except herself and Chad, landed in a strange position. Ichigo was on his back, his legs landing in between; Ishida was on his stomach as his back side was up in the air; Yoruichi was on her stomach, laying flat; and Tsukiko was on her back, her arms and legs were out, making it look like an X.

Orihime got up and walked over to Ichigo with an amazed look on her face. "Wow! Kurosaki-kun, your landing pose is so artistic!"

"Be quiet." He simply said to her.

Tsukiko and Ishida began to get up from their poses on the floor.

"Ow, my back. I need a freaking massage now!" Tsukiko said as she rubbed her lower back.

"Jeez! That was a hell of a ride. This isn't what I signed up for." Ishida said as he rubbed his head. He suddenly pulled out an extra cape from his shirt while saying, "I didn't think I'd have to use my extra cape so soon."

"T-That freak...He brought an extra one..." Ichigo and Tsukiko said as both they and Chad stood next to one another looking at Ishida with a weird face.

"It's good that no one seems to be hurt." Orihime said with a smile.

"Good my tail!" Yoruichi shouted as the cat head-butted Orihime right on her right eye.

"Owww..." Orihime cried as she held her eye. Yoruichi had a stress mark at the back of her head while saying,

"Didn't you listen to what I said?! It turned out fine because it was the _shield_ that touched the Thrust! If one of the Flowers touched it, you'd have lost your life!"

"I-I'm sorry."

"Relax, Yoruichi. You don't have to be all angry about it. She _did_ save our lives and all." Tsukiko said as she patted Orihime's head.

"You don't seem to understand the gravity of the situation." Yoruichi kept arguing.

The dusk had finally settled and as Tsukiko looked around, she took notice that it was empty. Not a single soul was out. It was like a ghost town or something.

"This is Soul Society?" Ichigo asked.

"That's right. This place is commonly known as Rukongai. The place where souls led to Soul Society first reside. It is located on the outer edge of the Seireitei, where the Shinigamis live. It is the poorest, most liberated place in Soul Society and it is where most souls live." The cat explained.

"If that's true, you wouldn't know it by looking..." Ishida said as he looked around.

"What's that? The streets look was different over there." Ichigo commented.

"Oh, that's-" The cat was interrupted by Ichigo who said,

"I got it! That's _whatever it's called_ where the Shinigami live!" He exclaimed.

"It's called the Seireitei, idiot." Tsukiko said as she moved some of the hair that was covering her face.

Ichigo then stated running towards the Seireitei looking like an idiot while saying, "Alright!"

"Y-You fool! Don't approach that place recklessly! You'll die!" Yoruichi shouted at him.

"Huh?" Now this finally caught his attention.

Out of the sky, large blocks of cement began to fall from the sky. They landed right in front of Ichigo and the quickness of the cement wall falling, it caused dust and small pieces of rocks fell. Everyone looked either worried or amazed. All around the area more cement walls kept appearing. The remainder of the group covered their eyes so that the debris wouldn't get in their eyes.

Ichigo coughed due to the dust.

A loud voice boomed saying, "It's been a long time...since someone has tried to come through the Gate of Pure Spirits without a pass."

Everyone looked at the sight in front of them. A large giant stood in front of Ichigo. His shihakushō was customized that it showed the left size (from his view) of his own chest as his left arm had a metal plate covering from the shoulder, all the way down to his hand. On top of his head was a hat that had strings coming from both sides. His hair was in two pig tails that were made out of his own hair, also having a pony tail and beard.

"Long time since I've had a visitor. I'll take good care of you, little boy."

Everyone a couple of feet away from Ichigo looked amazed at the sight before them. They had never seen anyone of that size in their lives. Perhaps in movies but not in real life.

"Holy shiz that is one big guy." Tsukiko said in amazement. The giant just grinned.

Behind the wall in the Seireitei, a group of Shinigami stood away from the wall.

"The Ryoka has fallen outside the Seireitei." A male shinigami said as they observed the scene in front of them.

Another male spoke. "If it's on _that_ side, we won't be needed."

And finally, the last male spoke. He had a bandage coming from him left cheek and going over his nose. He had three straight scars going down his right eye and below the bandage on his left cheek, was a 69 tattooed. "Yeah. After all, outside the Gate of Pure Spirits...there's Jidanbou."

The hilt of the giant man, now known as Jidanbou was slammed down towards the ground, causing a large amount of rubble fly across the sky in front of the group. His weapon was two axes.

Jidanbou laughed. "Now, come at me any way you like, little boy!"

"He's huge..." Ishida said as the group observed Jidanbou. "What is he? That's past the limits of human size...Who the hell is he?"

"His name is Jidanbou." Yoruichi said. "He is one of the heroes chosen from all of Soul Society...and the guardsman for one of the four Great Pure Spirit Gates, a.k.a. the Gate of the White Way."

"Guardsman..." Ishida said.

"So that means we have to beat this guy just for us to go in, right?" Tsukiko said as she observed the giant hero closely.

"Yes. But it's not such a simple feat. After all, it's been three hundred years since he's taken this mission...and not once has the Gate of the White Way ever been breached. He possesses a Herculean strength worthy of legend."

"How can we fight someone like that..." Ishida calmly said.

"It's a chance to show off out intellect. For now, we should all formulate a plan together. Hey, Ichigo..."

The cat screamed as she took notice that Tsukiko, Orihime, and Chad ran towards Ichigo in order to help.

"HEYYY! TSUKIKO! SADO! ORIHIME! Come back! Come back, you three!"

'Ichigo, you better not take all the fun.' Tsukiko thought as she ran.

'Kurosaki-kun, just wait. We'll help you as soon as we can.' Orihime thought in her own head as well and prepared for a fight by putting two fingers on each of her hair pin.

Jidanbou just stared until he raised his right arm up and slashed the ground right to the right of Ichigo. He then scraped it towards his left. This caused many large rocks come flying towards the three teens. A barrier was now in between the three, causing them to not be allowed to help Ichigo.

"What the hell was that?! That's insane!" Ishida said as looked.

"You three have bad manners. I bet you're from the country." Jidanbou said.

"I don't have bad manners!" Tsukiko shouted towards the male giant.

Jidanbou just ignored her yelling causing Tsukiko to have an anger mark. "Listen up!" He said. "In the city, we've got things called 'rules'. Number One," he lifted his right index finger, "when you come home from outdoors, wash your hands." The lifted his middle finger, "Number Two, don't eat things that fall on the floor." He lifted his right ring finger, "Number Three, when you duel, come one at a time.

"My first opponent is the boy with hair like colored rock candy."

Tsukiko started to giggle, "'Colored rock candy', that's a good one."

"Shut up, Tsukiko." Ichigo shouted.

Jidanbou just continued speaking, "Until that's finished, you three sit there quietly." He turned back to get ready to fight.

"Inoue. Tsukiko. When I see an opportunity, I'm going to open a hole in this stone wall. At that moment, send Tsubaki through it toward that big guy." Chad said as he explained a strategy to help Ichigo.

"What's that?" Jidanbou turned to look at the three. "You still mumbling stuff?"

"He has surprisingly sharp hearing." Orihime said.

"I know. Weird." Tsukiko stated.

"Yeah." Chad said.

"Hey! Chad! Inoue! Tsukiko!" Ichigo shouted from his side.

"Kurosaki-kun, are you okay?" Orihime asked as the three ran towards an opening crack. "Are you hurt?"

"Yeah, I'm fit as a fiddle."

"J-Just wait one minute, okay? We'll-" Orihime was interrupted by Ichigo.

"Yeah, about that...Inoue, would you, Chad, and Tsukiko keep still there?"

"What? W-What are you talking about?! Kurosaki-kun, that's-"

"It's okay, it's okay. Just wait and don't worry."

"He's right you know." Tsukiko said to Orihime.

"No," Ishida said as he walked past the three. "I refuse!"

"Ishida-kun..."

"Our time is limited. Right now, rather than you fighting alone, we should confront the situation together...and proceed on in a speedy manner." Ishida explained.

"You're there, too, Ishida?"

Ishida suddenly got an anger mark and shouted, "I've been here the whole time! Quit talking so irritatingly at a time like this!"

"Remember Ishida, this is Ichigo we're talking too." Tsukiko said as she examined in her nails.

"Blah, blah, blah, be quiet."

"Can you take him?" Chad asked.

Ichigo just rubbed his neck and said, "Probably, yeah."

"_Probably_?! What do you mean _probably_?!" Ishida shouted.

"Don't scream next to my ear you dumbass!" Tsukiko shouted at Ishida.

"Sorry, Takeshi-san." Ishida apologized but continued screaming at Ichigo. "Don't you get it?!

"Oh, jeez...I'm tellin' you, don't worry."

On the other side of the rock-made wall, Ishida was pounding his fist against it. "How can I not worry?!"

"I'll tell you a secret. The plan at the beginning was for me to use the full ten days to get back my Shinigami powers. But that was taken care of in five days. So just what did I do for the _next_ five days?"

"W-What were you doing?" Ishida asked.

"I was fighting. For five days, straight through day and night, I fought one-on-one with Hat-and-Clogs."

"I thought you trained with them, Tsukiko-chan?" Orihime asked the red eyed teen.

"I did. I just had a different training method." Tsukiko told her.

"I see. And you learned the essentials of combat-" Ishida was interrupted by Ichigo.

"No."

"Huh?"

"Tsukiko learned _different_ styles of combat. I didn't. That guy wouldn't teach me jack. But..." Ichigo said as he reached for the hilt of his weapon. The bandages that were wrapped around the blade fell, "...stamina and guts came whether I liked it or not." He was now ready to fight.

Tsukiko rested against the rock. Her thoughts were wildly moving along her brain. She knew that Ichigo would be able to take care of himself. But then again, she felt that something, if not now, was going to happen. And it would be bad. She sighed as she ran her gloved hands through her hair.

"Tsukiko-chan, are you alright?"

Tsukiko looked towards her right and saw Orihime. "Yeah, I'm alright. Just thinking over some things."

"Do you think Kurosaki-kun will be fine?" She asked.

"Yeah. I know how Ichigo is after training and hanging out with him. He is strong and as long as he is confident, he'll be able to go through almost anything."

Orihime smiled at the answer and nodded.

Back with Ichigo, he stood in front of the giant. They stared at each other as Jidanbou said, "You done talking?"

"I don't remember asking you to wait at all." Ichigo said with a somewhat cocky voice.

"So you're a country kid, too. You ain't showin' proper etiquette." Jidanbou raised his ax and said, "When someone waits for you...YOU SAY 'THANK YOU!'"

The giant slammed his weapon down to the ground quickly, directing it towards Ichigo. A strong gust of wind and dust flew and went straight towards the others. Orihime screamed and everyone covered their faces.

"What's going on?!" Ishida shouted as he covered his face.

Jidanbou waited for the dust to settle, looking to see if his opponent, Ichigo, was dead. But as soon as it began to settle, the sight in front of him shocked him. Ichigo blocked the attack with Zangetsu.

"What are you..." The giant said.

"Attacking before I'm in position...ain't _that _lack of etiquette?"

Jidanbou looked worried for a while, but he suddenly burst into laughter. The pitch of his laugh had sent a rather large force of wind towards Ichigo. And because of that, it pushed him back.

"Why the hell is that giant man laughing?" Tsukiko asked as she stood next to Chad on his right.

"You're pretty good." The massive man said. "Nice. It's been decades since anyone's stopped my axe. Alright. In that case...for the first time in a long time...I'll fight without holding back! Out of those who've tried to enter this gate, the number of people who've stopped my first attack is three, including you. But there ain't a single one who's stopped my second attack!"

He lifted his right arm up, ready to strike. And while he did that, Ichigo lifted his own right arm to block the up coming attack. Jidanbou slammed down, attacking Ichigo, but once again, Ichigo blocked it.

"Good, you're still standin'. I got plenty more o' that! Eat this! TEN JIDAN-HIT FESTIVAL! ONE!" He attacked. "TWO!" Again. "THREE!" Again. "FOUR!" Again. "FIVE!" Again. "SIX!"

Ruble from every attack was sent flying past the rest of the group. Luckily for them, it hadn't hit anyone.

"SEVEN!"

"What's happening?!" Ishida questioned.

"SEVEN! EIGHT! Uh...SIX! EIGHT! " He lost track of counting, going back and forth. He lifted his arm up in the sky for one last time. "It's about time for the finish!" He sliced across. This time large rocks were cut up and sent flying towards the rest.

Orihime was lucky enough to not be hit by any. Ishida had to keep dodging any of the rocks that were close to hitting him. Chad blocked any rocks that would hit him and push it away from himself. Tsukiko created her shields, protecting herself from any that had fallen on her. It suddenly stopped.

Sweat dripped from Jidanbou's forehead as he spoke. "Wh-Wha..."

The rocks that blocked the group had begun to crumble and fell towards the ground. Dust was everywhere and everyone waited for it to clear. As it began to clear up, Ichigo was now in sight and he wasn't hurt.

"How're...you...How're you still standin'?!"

"He's standing...Kurosaki's standing!" Ishida said.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime said with a smile on her face.

'Heh, I knew he would make it.' Tsukiko thought with a smirk on her face.

'So that's it...What Ichigo learned from that man was...not stamina, nor guts, nor even the essentials of combat...' Chad thought in his head.

Urahara's words spoke through Chad's head. "It's true he has far above average powers as a Shinigami. However, he has very few skills as to how to _use_ that excessive power."

Chad's thoughts continued, 'What other Shinigami have, what he definitively lacked...it's _experience_. If he couls at least compensate for that, he would...'

"Is that it?" Ichigo said.

'He would...'

"Then it's my turn now." Ichigo said as he brought his Zanpakutou in front of him.

'He would become _frighteningly_ powerful!' Chad finally concluded his thoughts.

Jidanbou stared at Ichigo for a while and said, "Not yet! I'm not done yet! My techniques ain't run out yet!" As he spoke, he reached for something from his shihakushō. He pulled out another axe.

"A second axe?!" Ishida shouted.

This caught Tsukiko by surprise. 'WHAT!?'

Jidanbou lifted both his arms up, preparing to launch an attack. His face turned red and his veins looked as if it was ready to pop out. His armor from his left arm broke, revealing a dark arm, not like his skin tone.

"Take this! My ultimate must-kill attack...Ten-Thousand-Year Jidan-Hit Festival!" He brought down his arm at a rapid speed.

Ichigo looked up at the attack and said, "Sorry. I'm going to smash those axes." As soon as he finished his last sentence, he attacked. He swung his blade towards the left and just like he said, he broke the axes, leaving Jidanbou wide-eyed.

The force of Ichigo's own attacked sent the rocks in front of the group flying towards them, risking them of getting injuries. Orihime created her yellow-orange shield, covering herself and the two boys. Tsukiko made her black shield to defend herself and Chad as well.

Jidanbou fell and landed on his behind. In her hands were the hilts of his axes. He flew towards the gate and stopped. Everything was clear and settled. Jidanbou began to get up and said,

"Wh-What the hell..."

"Freaking Kurosaki...What did he just do?!" Ishida asked.

"He beat him, of course." Tsukiko said to him.

Yoruichi looked and was quite impressed with Ichigo's result.

"But that huge guy just...got tossed through the air..."

Jidanbou jumped back to stand on his feet. He smiled and said, "Whoa, that was close. I got distracted and let myself slip and fall on my can. Huh? What's with that look on you face? Oh, I bet you think you tossed me through the air." He laughed.

'Oh, great. He's in denial mode now.' Tsukiko thought with a sweat drop.

"What're you talkin' 'bout? There ain't no way I could get tossed through the air. Jeez, that's why country hicks're such a hassle. Just you wait." He lifted his fists with the remains of his weapons. "I'll get you wit' my axes again."

He finally took notice that his weapons were destroyed. "My axes..."

Yoruichi jumped on top of one of the remains and said, "So Jidabou's axes shattered from one attack."

"What?! Those _absurdly huge _axes?" Ishida said with disbelief.

"Hey, say something." Ichigo said as he rested his own weapon on his shoulder.

"My..." tears began to form on his face. "...axes!" He slammed his fists down and so on, causing Ichigo to jump constantly. Tears were falling.

"They're broken! They're all broken! My axes are broken!" He then stopped but kept crying.

A rather large sweat drop appeared on Ichigo's forehead.

"Now he's crying...What is _with_ him?" Ishida said.

"I have no clue." Tsukiko replied with a sweat drop.

"It sounds like a siren." Orihime said.

Chad just remained silent.

"U-Uh...like...I'm sorry...for breakin' your axes." Ichigo apologized as he rubbed the back of his head with his left hand. He the brought it down and raised it up and down in a calming matter and said, "I really shouldn't have broken _both_ of them. Right?"

"Y-You're...such a good guy!" Jidanbou said with tears. "You and me are enemies, but you still worry about a loser like me." He suddenly grabbed Ichigo's shoulders with his large hands. "So big! What a big-hearted man you are!"

"Well, actually...seeing someone cry so much in front of me, I couldn't _not_ comfort them..."

Jidanbou suddenly stood and said with his arms up to his chest and in fists, "And in comparison, what did I do? I sobbed like a baby just 'cause my axes broke. I'm a disgrace to all men. It's a total defeat!" He suddenly raised his arms up in the air and said, "It's a total defeat! As a warrior and as a man, I lost totally to you! It's three hundred years since I became the gateman of the Gate of the White Way. I never even lost once. You're the first man to defeat me." With his left hand, he wiped away the tears that were falling.

"Enter! Jidanbou gives you permission to pass through the Gate of the White Way."

"Y-Yeah!" Ichigo said with a huge grin-like smile.

Tsukiko ran from her place and towards Ichigo. As soon as she was near, she jumped on his back, causing him to stumble a bit.

"Nice job, Ichigo! I knew you had it in ya!" Tsukiko said as she wrapped her arms around Ichigo's neck.

"T-Thanks." He said with a faint blush on his cheeks. She smiled and then jumped off his back and stood next to him. His blush then faded as he placed Zangetsu back on his back.

The others soon approached and the first one to speak was Ishida.

"Is it really okay for us to go through, too?"

"Yeah. I lost to your leader. I don't have the right to stop you guys." Jidanbou said.

"Kurosaki's our leader?!" Ishida shouted as he pointed at him. "Don't make me laugh."

"What're you all worked up about?" Ichigo asked with a sweat drop.

"Hey Ichigo. If you're our leader, does that make me second in command?" Tsukiko asked him.

"Yeah."

"What?!" Ishida screamed.

"Cool! Then you shall be like Batman and I shall be the sexy and cool Batgirl!" Tsukiko said with a huge smile.

Again, Ichigo blushed and nodded his head.

"You're named Kurosaki?" Jidanbou asked.

"Yeah, Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Ichigo, eh? That's a really cute name."

"It is huh?" Tsukiko said.

An anger mark appeared on Ichigo's head as he shouted, "Shut up! It's 'Ichi' for 'first prize' and 'Go' for 'guardian angel'! It ain't cute."

"But the 'Guardian angel' part is cute, Ichigo." Tsukiko said with a grin.

"You're not helping Tsukiko!"

Jidanbou smiled and said, "Be careful, Ichigo. I don't know why you're entering this gate, but...inside is nothing _but_ strong guys."

"I know." Ichigo said with a grin.

"Oh. Okay, as long as you know. Lessee...I'll open the gate now, so get outta the way." The giant turned and placed his hands under the gate, getting ready to lift it. "Don't you turn tail. I'm gonna lift all at once."

He then began to lift the gate up in a normal pace. Everyone was amazed at how he simply managed to lift it up. At some point, Jidanbou began to struggle but he soon lifted it with all his might.

"A-Amazing." Ichigo said.

"That thing could actually be _lifted_?" Orihime said.

Tsukiko ran towards the giant since he seemed to have paused. Ichigo followed along as she said,

"What's wrong? Why don't you say anything? Did something happen?"

When she looked at the giant's face, she immediately could tell that there was something wrong. For him to be speechless and in shock, there had to be something. Tsukiko looked towards where he was looking and she saw something. More like someone. He was wearing the shihakushō and on top, a taicho's haori. The man had silver hair and on the left side of his hip, there was a Zanpakutou.

"Who's that?" Apparently, Ichigo was also looking at the direction you were.

"Third squad Taicho...Ichimaru Gin." Jidanbou said with a scared voice.

'If my gut feelings had a voice, it would most likely say "I told you so". This isn't gonna be good.' Tsukiko thought as soon as she saw the man give a fox-like grin. 'Not good indeed.'


	26. Rukongai and Reunion

**Sorry I took so long writing this chapter, but now that it is up I hope you all like it.**

**Black-HunterXX: **I'm glad that you think that this is getting good. Makes me happy that there are people who like it. Romance scenes are currently being worked on, in my head. Lol.

**Disclaimer: Bleach and plot belongs to Tite Kubo. Any other character belongs to me.**

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Chapter 26: Rukongai and Reunion

Tsukiko and Ichigo stared at the man a couple of feet before them. As she looked at the man, she heard Jidanbou's scared gasps. She reached her hands behind her back, in case of an emergency.

"Who's _that_ guy?" Ichigo asked no one in particular.

"Third Squad Taicho, Ichimaru Gin." Yoruichi answered for him.

Silence was present for a while when the Taicho in front of them spoke.

"Hey, that ain't right."

Suddenly, a flash of light was sent straight towards Jidanbou. Tsukiko gasped as she managed to see what the light was. As soon as it was gone, it was clearly noticeable that Jidanbou had been attacked. Blood gushed out from his wounds and his left arm released its hold on the gate on top of them.

The gate lowered itself and now Jidanbou had to put more pressure on his right hand and his back. The giant was forced down to his knees.

"Jidanbou!" Tsukiko shouted towards the injured man.

"That ain't right." The taicho looked directly at the group and said, "The gatekeeper ain't there to _open_ the gate."

Jidanbou was struggling in his hold on the gate. Behind the two teens and the giant man, Yoruichi thought to herself, 'We were careless. We never thought someone like _him_ would come this far out. Even if these kids have become stronger, a squad taicho class opponent is beyond their imagination. Fighting him right now...is a worst case scenario that _must_ be avoided!'

"I lost." Everyone heard Jidanbou finally speak. "A defeated gatekeeper opening the gate...makes perfect sense!" He said as he struggled to keep hold.

The silver haired taicho looked at him for a second and said, "What you talkin' 'bout?" He began to walk forward and said, "A defeated gatekeeper don't open no gate."

It was then and there that Tsukiko now held the grip of Kuro Maho. The taicho kept speaking.

"When a gatekeeper's defeated..." He stopped and looked up towards Jidanbou, "...it means death."

Suddenly, Ichigo ran from his spot next to Tsukiko and attacked the Taicho with Zangetsu. The taicho had blocked and they jumped away from each other.

"Ichigo!" Both Tsukiko and Yoruichi shouted.

As soon as Ichigo positioned with his blade pointing towards the taicho, Ichigo said, "What the hell're you doing, you sonuvabitch?!"

Tsukiko behind him sweat dropped and thought to herself, 'That's MY line!' She moved her gloved hands away and placed them on her hips.

"Don't you come out afterwards and expect to give orders! You fox-faced bastard! Any piece o' shit who attacks an unarmed man without a second thought...is _ours_ to kill. Ain't that right, Tsukiko?"

Tsukiko grinned and said, "Right!"

"What a couple of funny kids. Ain't you scared o' me?"

"Not one BIT!" Ichigo told him.

"Hey! Quit that, Ichigo! Tsukiko! We have to retreat for the moment!"

"Huh? What for? The fight's just starting! I can't let this fool think he beat me! Don't worry. I'll end it in one sec-"

"You're Kurosaki Ichigo and Takeshi Tsukiko?" The silver haired man asked.

Ichigo stopped his talking and Tsukiko walked forwards as she said, "You know about us?" She now stood next to Ichigo, her hands on her hips once more.

"Oh, so it is really you both." With that said, he walked away. His back facing them.

"H-H-Hey! Where're you going?! Hey, wait!" Ichigo said.

"Then all the more reason I can't let you through here." Ichimaru said as he kept walking but finally stopped. He reached out for his Zanpakutou and held it out. It gleamed.

"Why'd you go so far away?" Ichigo asked. "You gonna throw that wakizashi?"

"It ain't a wakizashi. This here's my Zanpakutou." He suddenly turned around and bent his knees, ready to strike. At his sudden moments, there was a large gust of wind.

"Shoot him dead, Shinsou." He stabbed his blade forward and just like Tsukiko had predicted, his Zanpakutou shined and the blade extended towards Ichigo.

Ichigo raised Zangetsu to block the attack, but before taicho's weapon hit his own, Tsukiko ran in front of Ichigo and raised Kuro Maho to block instead.

"Tsukiko!" Ichigo said in shock as he watched the girl in front of him try to hold off the attack.

Tsukiko grunted, but the attack held to much force and it sent her crashing into Ichigo, who then both crashed into Jidanbou. It had sent the three flying back past the gate. The landed a couple of yards from their old position. Once they crashed, Tsukiko fell off from Ichigo. Blood escaped from her mouth and head once she made contact with the ground.

"Takeshi! Kurosaki!" Ishida yelled towards them.

Chad suddenly ran towards them and did Orihime as she shouted out, "Tsukiko-chan! Kuorsaki-kun!"

"Oh no! The gate!" Yoruichi shouted as the gate fell.

On the other side, Ichimaru Gin walked over and waved as he said. "Bye-bye."

Then and there, the gate was closed.

"Ow! God, OWWWW!" Ichigo said as he rubbed his head.

"Kurosaki-kun, are you alright?" Orihime said as she first took notice of Ichigo.

"Kurosaki!" Ishida said.

"The gate?! Damn!" Ichigo said in a pissed tone. He suddenly realized that someone was missing. "Where's Tsukiko?!" He said now in a worried tone.

The other three finally realized that she didn't land next to them. Ichigo got up quickly and began to look for the girl. He looked towards his left and there, he found her on the ground.

"Tsukiko!" Ichigo shouted as he ran towards her. She had landed near Jidanbou's head. As soon as Ichigo reached her, he saw blood on the ground. Her blood. "Tsukiko! Wake up! Wake up!" Ichigo said to her as he lightly touched her pained face.

Orihime quickly ran towards Ichigo and kindly asked him to go with the other two boys so that she may properly check her wounds. He did so and now he had to wait.

Orihime held her flower pins and said, "Shun'ou, Ayame! Scared Dual Return Shield! I reject!"

Her two pixie-like guardians flew from their positions and formed around Tsukiko. Shun'ou and Ayame began their work on healing Tsukiko. Tsukiko once pained face lessened and soon, her injuries were gone.

"Tsukiko-chan? Can you hear me?" Orihime asked.

"Ow!" And that was how Orihime understood that Tsukiko was okay. Tsukiko stood up, her hands and arms held her torso up and she said, "Damn that was one hell of an attack."

"Tsukiko-chan!" Orihime glomped the girl.

"Orihime, you're choking me!" Tsukiko said as she tried to breathe.

"S-Sorry!" Orihime said as she released the girl and rubbed her head. "C'mon, everyone is waiting for you."

The two girls stood up and Tsukiko grabbed her sais before they walked back towards where the boys were at. As they neared, Tsukiko took notice that it was silent. And that was weird in her opinion because with Ichigo and Ishida together, there had to be some noise.

"Hiya!" Tsukiko said with a smile as she approached them.

"Tsukiko!" Ichigo said with a smile. Tsukiko grinned and sat on Ichigo's lap and said,

"You miss me huh?!" She teased him. "Well don't worry Dark Knight, Batgirl will never die!" And then she started laughing like a maniac. Ichigo was blushing, since she was sitting on his lap; Orihime was laughing along with her; and Chad and Ishida simply sweat dropped.

"I see you two are alright." Yoruichi said as the cat approached the group.

"Sorry," Tsukiko began as she lowered her head, "I let the gate close."

Ichigo rubbed her back show that it was alright as the cat said, "Forget it. With _him_ as your opponent, Ichimaru Gin, it couldn't be helped. Just be glad you're now healed."

Ichigo gripped his fist in anger. He grabbed Tsukiko's waist and lifted her up, along with himself. He placed her right next to him and he walked towards Znagetsu. Pulling him from the ground, Ichigo looked at Orihime and said,

"Inoue...Help me patch this guy up."

"Okay."

"Hey you guys..." Tsukiko said as she was looking towards the village. People were actually coming from out of their houses. After Tsukiko had spoken, the group turned and looked towards the direction of the village.

"What's with them?" Ichigo asked as he stood besides Tsukiko.

"Were they hiding until now?" Ishida asked from Tsukiko's right.

"Why?" Orihime questioned. She was on Ichigo's left. Chad right behind her.

"They were afraid of us." Yoruichi simply answered their questions. "Souls that come to Soul Society improperly, without the guidance of Shinigami, are called Ryoka...and are thought to be the source of all sorts of disasters."

"They think we're enemies?" Tsukiko questioned.

Everyone was on guard as so many people were now watching them. Tsukiko was about to pull out her sais just in case when an elderly man began to walk forward. At this gesture, she stopped.

"Please wait." The old man said. He was wearing a yellow kimono top with brown hakama pants. A purple vest was over the yellow top. The man then suddenly bowed and said, "I am the chief of Rukongai. I was watching that entire incident. As Jidanbou's saviors, I would like to welcome all of you.

All the people that were once staring at the small group approached them.

"There're a lot of arrogant, annoying Shinigamis, but Jidanbou-san was from Rukongai." A man told Tsukiko and Ichigo as they were watching Orihime work.

"He always treated us kindly." Another said. "You both went against Ichimaru Gin to protect Jidanbou-san. You must be good people." Ichigo scratched his face as if thinking, but the man continued. "Still, that's a severe wound."

Tsukiko walked over to Orihime as the man finished speaking.

"Alright," Orihime suddenly said as she put her hands on her hips.

"So how's the wound Orihime? Can you cure it?" Tsukiko asked.

"Yup." She turned to face everyone and said, "Rest assured. I'll heal Jidanbou's wound!"

"Inoue. You...can heal it?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah! Leave it to me." She then placed her hand on her chest and said, "How do you think Tsukiko-chan's wounds were healed?"

Orihime stretched her arms out towards the wounds and said, "Shun'ou, Ayame..." The two guardians once again flew out of her hair pins and towards Orihime.

"Hey there again!" Shun'ou greeted. "Another job for us?"

"Hello." Ayame said to Tsukiko.

"Hi." Tsukiko said with a smile.

"Please, lend me your power once again." Orihime asked.

"Of course! We are _your_ power, after all. You just have to want to do it. Say the magic words." Shun'ou told Orhime before the two flew towards their formation.

"_Sacred Dual Return Shield! I reject!_" The shield floated down and on top of the wound on Jidanbou's arm. Everyone around was in awe.

"Wow...That's cool, Inoue." Ichigo placed his hand under his chin while observing. "When did you get a power like that?"

"Excuse me! Please let me through! Let me thro-" A little boy's voice said as he tried to get through. "Mister! It's me! It's me, Shibata, Mister!"

"Shibata?" Tsukiko heard Chad's voice, like if he wasn't sure.

"Yeah, Shibata the cockatiel, Mister!"

"Shibata!" Chad said, now knowing who it was.

After that little reunion, Chad went around with Shibata, leaving Yoruichi, Tsukiko, Ichigo, Ishida and Orihime. Tsukiko walked towards where Ichigo was and asked the man that she was talking to earlier.

"Do you know a Takeshi Ryuu and Mizuki?"

The man closed his eyes and placed his chin to think. He suddenly opened his eyes and said, "Yeah I know them. They live down this block. Their house is had a dragon and moon symbol in the front."

"Really?! Thank you!" Tsukiko said with a smile.

"Why do you want to know?" The man asked.

"They are my parents." Tsukiko then turned towards Ichigo and said, "I'll be back soon, okay. And maybe later you can meet them."

Ichigo smiled at her and said, "Sure. Just be careful okay."

"I will!" She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and left running. Ichigo placed his hand on his cheek and blushed.

"She your girlfriend?" The man asked.

"N-No! She is just a friend." Ichigo said to him in denial.

"Right. Well, better get her fast. There aren't many girls like her." With that last said, the man walked away.

'He is right though. There aren't many girls like Tsukiko. And I-I do like her. Jeez, what a bad time to figure out you like a girl. Who knows when I'll be able to confront her,' Ichigo thought in his head as he rubbed his temples.

Tsukiko was running down the street as fast as she could. Every house she ran by, she'd look if there was a symbol of a dragon and moon. She tried a few more houses when she stopped. There to her right was a black cloth that had a red dragon and a silver moon. She walked towards the door and once in front of it, she knocked.

After waiting for a minute, the door opened. Tsukiko looked down and saw that it was a little boy and girl there. They were twins. The boy and girl had light brown hair and silver eyes. They looked only to be eight years old.

"Hi. Does Takeshi Ryuu andMizuki live here?" Tsukiko asked.

"Yup. They aren't here right now, but you can come inside. "The girl said as the boy opened the door more for her to walk in.

"Thank you. Oh what are you names?" Tsukiko asked.

"My name is Hashima Risa and this is my brother Makao. What's yours?" Risa asked Tsukiko.

"My name is Takeshi Tsukiko." Tsukiko walked inside and saw that it was a traditional Japanese house. So with that, she took a seat on the ground. The twins followed along.

"Are you a Shinigami, Tsukiko-chan?" Risa asked.

"Well, you can kinda say that. I'm not an official Shinigami, more like a substitute."

"I saw how you protected Jidanbou and that orange haired guy. I thought that was cool." Masao said to her.

"Thanks." Tsukiko gave them a smile.

The door was suddenly opened and footsteps were heard as well as a voice. "Risa, Masao, we're back." A feminine voice said.

"We're in here and we have a guest!" Risa shouted.

And there right in front of her was Tsukiko's parents. The looked the same as the day that they died. The only different thing about them was their clothing.

"Tsukiko..." Takeshi Mizuki said as she watched Tsukiko. The teen stood up and walked over to her mother and father. She suddenly jumped and engulfed the two in a hug.

"Mom! Dad!" Tears were falling from her red eyes as she said that. Her father hugged her tightly as her mother cried. Tsukiko was at last reunited with her parents.

Tsukiko, her father and her mother were now sitting together. The twins had left to their room to play.

"Why are you here, baby girl?" Ryuu, her father asked as her mother, Mizuki nodded.

"I came here with a group of friends, Kurosaki Ichigo, Inoue Orihime, Yatsutora Chad, and Ishida Uryuu, to rescue another friend from being executed. We traveled here with a talking cat-"

"Yoruichi. I knew that Urahara was going to bring trouble. Oh well." Ryuu said.

"It was bound to happen, honey." Mizuki said.

"Wait! How do you know Yoruichi?" Tsukiko asked her parents.

"I used to be in the same squad as her." Ryuu simply said as he grinned.

"'Squad'?" Tsukiko questioned, but as quickly as she said that, she said, "You were a shinigami once?!"

"Yes, your father was one a very long time ago." Mizuki told her daughter.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell Kai?"

"If we were to have told you, you would have been in great danger. I was banded from Soul Society for getting your mother, who was human, pregnant. If Soul Society was to find out that you and Kai are children of a Shinigami, then they would have hunted us down and possible killed you." Ryuu explained to Tsukiko.

Tsukiko was silent. She was processing all the information given to her like a computer. "You didn't tell us to protect us?"

"Yes. We did this out of love." Mizuki said as she hugged her daughter.

Tsukiko smiled and said, "Well that makes sense. So I was a natural born Shinigami! Alright!"

Mizuki and Ryuu smiled at their daughter. How much they had missed her over the years and now being able to be with her, even if it was for a short while, was something they dreamed of. She told them everything that happened after their deaths.

It was getting dark already when he mother asked with a smile, "So Tsukiko, any boys in your life that you like?"

"Mom!" Tsukiko whined embarrassed as a picture of Ichigo appeared in her head.

"What?! Boys are chasing you already?! Daddy does not want his daughter to be chased around!" Ryuu said as he stood up.

"Well, she is the right age to be dating. Is there a boy?"

"There, there is this one boy I like." Tsukiko said with a blush.

"Who?" Her mother was so excited to be able to hear that her daughter had a crush.

"Kurosaki Ichigo. He was the one who gave me this necklace for my birthday." Tsukiko said as she touched the necklace.

"WOW! He must really like you to give you that." Her mother said.

"Wait, Kurosaki Ichigo?! Ain't he one of the boys who came with you?"

Tsukiko's eyes widened and she thought, 'Crap! Now he is going to hunt Ichigo down.'

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it." Masao said as he stood up and walked over to the door.

Tsukiko heard him open the door and was not surprised to hear Ichigo's voice.

"Uh, hi. Is Tsukiko in here?" He asked Masao.

"You must be Ichigo. Yeah, she's here. Come on in."

"Yes! Now I don't have to hunt him down!" Ryuu said as he stood up and got ready to pounce.

"Over my dead body!" Tsukiko shouted as she jumped towards her father and tackled him down. The two were wrestling on the floor as soon as Ichigo came in.

At the sight in front of him, Ichigo sweat dropped. But now a woman was standing next to him. He looked at the woman examined her. She had long dark brown hair and had hazel eyes. She was a petite woman.

"You must be Kurosaki Ichigo. I'm Takeshi Mizuki, Tsukiko's mother."

"It's nice to meet you, Takeshi-san." Ichigo said as he bowed a little.

"Please, call me Mizuki and no bowing. Makes me feel old." Mizuki said with a laugh.

Ichigo smiled and asked, "Who is Tsukiko fighting with?"

"Oh that's her father and my husband, Ryuu." From what Ichigo was able to see, Ryuu had black spiky hair and brown eyes.

"Hah! Victory is finally mine!" Tsukiko said as she had her left foot on top of her father.

"So the student has finally surpassed the master." Mizuki teased her husband.

"Daddy is proud to lose to his daughter!" Ryuu said.

"Oh, hey Ichigo!" Tsukiko said with a smile.

"Ichigo?!" With that said Ryuu got up, causing Tsukiko to fall towards Ichigo and resulted in Ichigo catching her.

"Thanks, Ichigo." Tsukiko said with a light blush.

"No problem." He said with a blush as well.

"So you are _the_ Kurosaki Ichigo that I have been hearing about." Ryuu said as he approached the two.

"R-Right." Ichigo then let go of Tsukiko and bowed saying, "It's a pleasure meeting you, Takeshi-san."

Ryuu just looked at Ichigo and laughed. "I like this boy. Very respectful. I approve."

"Dad, shut up!" Tsukiko said as she banged him on the head.

The two were once again wrestling on the floor when Mizuki asked, "Ichigo, would you do me and my husband a favor?"

"Sure." Ichigo said.

"Please, take care of Tsukiko. I know that you have feelings towards my baby and I want it to be you to take care of her since we can't anymore. Will you do this?"

Ichigo blushed and nodded his head. He then asked, "How do you know that I like her?"

"It's called a mother's intuition."

"Hah! I win again!" Tsukiko said.

"Not fair! You're a girl so I had to go easy on you."

"What?! Then don't go easy on me old man!"

Ichigo smiled at the sight. He was glad that she was finally able to see her parents, even if it was for the last time, she had new memories that she will forever keep stored in her heart.


	27. The New Plan and Ganju

**I apologize for not updating this in a while. I have midterms coming up so I am going to be uber busy. But I shall find time to update.**

Black-HunterXX: **Thanks! Lol, I'll try to make it as fluffy as a cloud. Hooray for randomness. LMAO.**

SaiyukiSucker: **Lol thanks for thinking that the chapter was cute. Yeah, drama is sometimes rather funny to witness when its not your own. lol.**

fmafangirl1415: **Thank you for thinking that the chapter was awesome!**

**Thanks a lot **xxColorCollector** and **crazysally **for adding this story to your favorites list!! And thanks to **Cherokeefox20 **for adding this story to your alert list!!**

**Disclaimer: Bleach, plot and characters, belong to Tite Kubo. My characted belong to me. **

**Onwards to new chapter!!**

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Chapter 27: The New Plan and Ganju

Tsukiko and Ichigo soon left her parents house after a tearful goodbye. Both women of the Takeshi family were crying rivers while the only male tried not to cry, but failed. Before Ichigo left the house, he had promised Mizuki that he would watch over Tsukiko. The mother smiled and hugged him.

Now the two were walking back towards the spot that was deemed their 'meeting room'. It was silent for a moment because they were both actually thinking about how they confessed about their feelings to Mizuki and Ryuu.

"Tsukiko," Ichigo began as he broke the silence.

"Yeah?"

"Are you going to miss your parents now that you were able to see them again?" He asked her.

She was silent for a moment until she said, "Not much."

He was confused. "Why?"

Tsukiko turned her head to look at Ichigo and said, "Because I know that they are at peace and not suffering at all."

Ichigo smiled and said, "You're right." He then raised his arms and crossed them behind his neck as he said, "Your old man is almost like mine."

She laughed and said, "I know huh. Only that mine is a bit saner than yours." Ichigo laughed and nodded his head, agreeing with her fully.

The sky was becoming dark behind them while in front you can see the orange and pinks. Ichigo brought down his hands but once they were by his side, his left hand accidentally brushed against Tsukiko's.

This small action caused the two teens to blush and look away. But that didn't stop Tsukiko from moving her right hand to touch his again.

'It's now or never,' the two teens thought in their heads as the looked down at their own hands. After making up their minds, they both move their hands together and held the others hand. Tsukiko looked up as Ichigo looked down. Their eyes interlocked and a blush crept up their cheeks.

They walked together, hand in hand to the village leader's house. Although the night air around them was filled with silence, they both enjoyed the quiet. No words, no sounds, nothing would ruin the moment that these two were currently having. Yet as good as things get, there is always something that would end it.

From behind the two, Chad was approaching them. Tsukiko took notice that there was another spiritual energy around them and stopped walking. Ichigo then stopped seeing that she had stopped; his hand still in hers.

"What's wrong, Tsukiko?" He asked her as he looked into her eyes.

"We have company," A silent whisper left her mouth.

Ichigo turned his head around, soon after Tsukiko did, and there found the culprit that Tsukiko was talking about. Quickly, the two teens released their hands from another and made it look like if nothing had happened.

"Chad..." He said.

"Yeah," Chad simply said.

Ichigo turned around completely and told him, "What the heck. If you're there, at least say something."

"I'm always behind both of you." The tall teen said. He then lifted his left hand up and gave him a thumb up. Ichigo being Ichigo was slightly confused, but Tsukiko on the other hand just followed the gesture that Chad had given them.

"Now how about we go inside? It's starting to get cold." Tsukiko told them as she began to rub her arms up and down to bring the heat back to them. The boys fully agreed and then they walked inside the Village Leader's house.

"Say what?! Why are we giving up breaking through the gate?" Tsukiko asked as she was sitting on Ichigo's left.

In order, it was Yoruichi, Chad to her right, then Ishida and Orihime. From the cat's left, it was Ichigo and then Tsukiko. In front of them was a pot on top of wood, boiling water, and across from Chad and Yoruichi, was the Village Leader.

"We're not _giving up_. The gate having been opened once, interior security must be tighter than ever before. That means using the same tactic again is _not_ good idea." The cat explained.

"I feel the same." Ishida spoke.

It was Chad's turn next. "What about the other gates?"

"There would be no significant difference from this one."

"Then what should we do?" Ichigo asked with his arms crossed against his chest.

"If the gates are no good, it just means we'll break in from somewhere other than the gates." Yoruichi then looked across and said to the old man, "Elder-dono, do you know Shiba Kuukaku?"

Shock appeared on the Elder's face as he stuttered, "Wh-What?!"

Although the man was in shock, Yoruichi continued, "Apparently, Shiba likes to change residence at the drop of a hat. I can't figure out where the fool is now."

"Shiba Kuukaku..." The Elder gripped his hand in a fist as he said the name as if it was a disease of some sorts. "Don't tell me you people intend to use _that_ to get inside the wall?"

"_That_?" Orihime asked confused.

Tsukiko turned to face Yoruichi and asked, "What does he mean by '_that_'?" As soon as she finished the question, Tsukiko became silent. A loud noise was coming towards the direction of where the group was currently at.

Ichigo took notice and said, "What's that sound?"

"What could it be?" Orihime wondered as she and Ishida turned to their left to face the direction of the door.

The out of no where, the door was ripped down by a man or perhaps a teen slamming through it. Everyone got up as fast as possible to avoid getting hit. He was sent flying towards the group and coincidentally, crashed right in front of Tsukiko.

"Owwww..." Tsukiko heard the guy mumble. He was wearing white hakama and kimono clothes, a burgundy obi sash around his waist. On top of the kimono, he had a black vest with yellow circles that connected to one another at the hem of his vest. On top of his head was a white bandana with red circle-like patterns. His left hand was gloved with red fingerless gloves, somewhat similar to Tsukiko's. He had on some strange looking goggles covering his eyes.

"Who's this guy?!" Ichigo shouted as he stood next to Tsukiko.

Tsukiko ignored the man in front of her when she heard a new noise. It sounded like a pig grunting. And yet she was right. A large pig or boar was walking through the door like if it owned the place. On top of its body was a large red bow.

"A boar!" Ichigo shouted.

"Thank you Captain Obvious. Now, how come there's a freaking boar here?" Tsukiko said sarcastically.

Ichigo simply gave her a small glare while Tsukiko gave him an innocent smile. The guy then stood up while dusting himself saying,

"Man oh man, my Bonnie-chan threw me off again." He then was standing up completely and brought his right arm up. His index and middle finger touching his temple as he saluted the Elder. "Yo! Long time no see, Old Dude."

"Ganju?! What are you doing here?! Go away!" The Elder shouted at him.

"What the heck? I visit you for the first time in ages and that's how you greet me? Your guests are shocked. Especially the cute one in front of me." He said as he looked around.

Tsukiko, of course, was freaked out, but then calmed when Ichigo gave him a glare.

"What's this?" The guy named Ganju took of his sunglasses or whatever they were and said, "Why is there a piece o' shit Shinigami-sama in a place like this?"

"Don't you mean two?" Tsukiko boldly spoke as she made her way to Ichigo's side.

"What?" Ichigo simply said.

"Don't _what_ me!" Ganju got up on Ichigo's face and began to pat Ichigo's face with his left hand while he continued speaking. "I asked why there is a piece o' shit Shinigami-sama in a place like this?!"

Ichigo was pissed. As soon as Tsukiko saw his face, she took a few steps back to allow Ichigo to release his anger.

"Huh?"

"Huh?" Ganju mocked but then grabbed his chin. A rather large anger mark was on Ichigo's head as Ganju shouted, "Say something, you dandelion-head-" But was soon punched in the face by Ichigo.

"Mind your manners!"

Ganju was sent flying towards the entrance of the door and was flat on his back. But as quickly as he flew towards that direction, he got up at the same speed. While holding his right cheek, he began to say, "W-What the hell're you doing?! You pickin' a fight?! Huh?!"

"That's my line!" Ichigo's angry voice said as he clenched his left fist. "You bust in here, flirt with Tsukiko, and start getting' on my case?! You boar-riding ape-man!"

Tsukiko began to laugh at the comment that Ichigo just made. She overheard Orihime saying that they should stop the fighting but the Elder knew that this was going to happen. And he made the look saying that he wasn't going to stop them by sipping some of his tea. Ishida, of course, was freaking out a bit by saying that they should stop them.

"You bastards...You say you don't know me?" Ganju asked.

"No I don't." Ishida said as he fixed his glasses.

"I don't know you." Orihime sweetly said.

"I dunno." Chad spoke.

"I don't even wanna know." Ichigo straight out said.

"I personally don't wanna know or care as much." Tsukiko said as she crossed her arms.

"No choice then, I'll tell ya."

'Did he not just hear what Ichigo and I said?' Tsukiko thought in her head with a sweat drop.

"My name is Ganju!" He shouted out loud as he pointed towards himself. Then he crossed his arms saying, "Self-proclaimed, The Deep Crimson Bullet of West Rukongai!" Another new pose, but this one made him look ridiculous seeing as he flexed his arms, showing his muscles, "Self-proclaimed, Number One Want-To-Call-Him-Big-Brother of West Rukongai for fourteen years! And finally...self-proclaimed, Number One Shinigami-Hater of West Rukongai!!"

"They're all 'self-proclaimed!'" Chad, Yoruichi, Orihime and Ishida shouted.

Ganju then looked at Tsukiko, gave her a wink and said, "And perhaps your future boyfriend."

Immediately, Tsukiko went to pound the guy in the head. Ganju was on the floor and held his head in pain. Tsukiko was breathing in and out heavily; Ichigo was besides her, calming her down.

"Hmph!" Ichigo said as soon as Tsukiko was calm. "What a hopeless loser!"

"What?" Ganju stated.

"What?" Ichigo mocked this time.

Ganju suddenly screamed. He ran towards Ichigo, slamming himself onto him and sent his flying, as well as himself, out the door.

"Ichigo!" Tsukiko shouted as she ran towards the door and outside. Once out, she looked towards her left and found four other people on boars. Not really caring, she just looked straight at Ichigo. The others were approaching, but as soon as they joined up with her, they were blocked by the four guys Tsukiko had just seen.

"Whoa, there! We won't let you get in Big Brother's way." One of them said.

"If you just _have_ to get involved, then..." A bald one said as the one with an afro continued,

"...we'll take you on."

"Goons..." Ishida said.

"Incredible..."Orihime stated right after.

"They're all..." Chad began.

"Riding boars..."Tsukiko and along with everyone else said.

"Hurry and get your ass outta here! While I'm alive, I won't let a Shinigami set _one foot_ in West Rukon-" Sadly, but funny, Ganju was kicked in the face by Ichigo.

"Bro!" One of Ganju's goons shouted.

"Jeez! I've had enough of you! If it's a fight you want, I'll give you one." Ichigo straight out told him.

"You bastard..." Ganju said as he held his face. "Not only once, but twice you've hit my beautiful face!"

"The second was a kick, dumbass."

"Stop that, Ichigo! Don't waste you energy on a meaningless fight!" Yoruichi told him.

"Remember, Yoruichi, he's a guy. They all do this," Tsukiko whispered to the cat.

"He's the one who picked the fight. If you wanna stop it, talk to him."

'Damn that fool for getting so heated over something stupid...' Yourichi thought.

"It looks like it's your and my destiny to fight." Ganju said before pulling the hilt of his weapon. It looked like a broken Zanpakutou.

"Stop this, Ganju! He isn't a bad Shinigami!" The Elder shouted as he finally made an appearance.

"Shut up! A Shinigami is a Shinigami. There's no good or bad about it." A straightforward Ganju said.

"Ganju..."

"Here it comes!" Ganju shouted as he faced Ichigo. He the ran towards a weaponless Ichigo.

"This is bad," Ishida commented. "Kurosaki doesn't have his Zanpakutou."

Immediately after that was said, Chad was holding Ichigo's Zanpakutou and threw it towards Ichigo.

"Thank you, Chad!" Ichigo removed the bandages from around Zangetsu and prepared to fight.

Tsukiko walked up towards the four men and said, "Get out of my way or else."

The men laughed and said, "And what can a girl like you do?"

Tsukiko leaked out her spirit energy, causing a purple glow to form around her. At one point she was facing the men, but then she was next to one of them, the one that was bald, and kicked him off the boar.

"That's what I can do," She simply stated.

Tsukiko overheard something about a quicksand and looked towards Ichigo. His blade had somehow sunk into the ground. And now being weaponless, he was kicked in the face.

"Pay attention, little girl!" The one with the afro said as he threw a punch towards Tsukiko. As soon as she heard him say that, she bent down. She got back up continued her fight with the four men.

They each got off their boars and surrounded her. She smirked and cracked her fingers and neck. "How about we play a little game of tag, eh? And I'm it." As soon as those words were out of her mouth, she used Shunpo and began to attack the men surrounding her.

"You're out!" She shouted towards the first one, a guy who was wearing a kimono, as she punched him right on the stomach.

"You too!" She punched the bald one again, but on his jaw this time.

"You're next!" She said to the blonde, while kicking him behind his back.

"And finally, you're out of here!" She punched the afro guy right on his face.

All four men were on the floor groaning in pain as Tsukiko stood over them with an evil grin on her face. "I win," She said. She walked away from them and headed back towards the rest of her group. Once she saw the look on their faces, she said with a cute smile, "What?"

'She's scary...' They all thought in their heads.

An alarm suddenly rang from the guy who was wearing the pink kimono. The four beaten up guys immediately got up and ran towards their boars, jumping on them. Tsukiko looked towards Ichigo's and Ganju's fight only to see Ganju stopping his attack at the sound of the alarm. Because of this, he trip and landed a face plant.

"Hey, what time is it?!" He shouted. His face was all bloodied, no doubt thanks to Ichigo and falling towards the ground.

"We're in trouble, Bro!" Kimono-Guy shouted. "It's already nine!"

"Oh crap! Come on, Bonnie-chan!" Ganju shouted and then whistled for his boar. A large rumbling noise was coming from behind Ichigo.

'Bonnie?' He thought, but it was too late to duck seeing that the boar was jumping over him.

"That is seriously one big ass boar," Tsukiko said aloud.


	28. The Shiba Family

**Gomen!! I'm sorry that I haven't been able to update for a while. Been super busy with school and family issues (that are driving me insane!!). But any who, here is the next chapter!**

Black-HunterXX: **Fluff makes the world go round!! Hahah, glad you thought the chapter was funny.**

Bakagirl101: **I'm glad that you think its, sweet, awesome, and cute. Thanks!**

**Thanks for those who added this story to their Favorite's List: **Miyu Zakuro

**Thanks to those who added me to their Story Alert: **Bakagirl101

**Disclaimer: Bleach, plot and characters, belong to Tite Kubo. Other characters belong to me!

* * *

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Chapter 28: The Shiba Family

Bonnie-chan had jumped over Ichigo, barely missing his head as the giant boar only grazed some of his hair. Once the boar landed in front of its master, Ganju was sent flying back. He did various amounts of flips, both in the air and on the ground.

'Ouch! That definitely had to hurt,' Tsukiko flinched every time the man hit the ground and just bounced back up towards the air.

Ganju passed his friends, who were back on their boars, and kept hitting his chin as he now slid on the ground. After a few more seconds of just sliding on the ground, Ganju had finally stopped. Dust formed but then disappeared, only to show the track marks that Ganju had created.

"Nice hit, Bonnie-chan." Ganju said wiping his chin after getting up from the dirt floor. "But we don't have time today. Hurry up and gimme a ride!" He demanded as he pointed towards himself.

A shine appeared on Bonnie-chan's eye as it suddenly ran towards Ganju. The boar hit the man from behind, causing Ganju to scream and be sent towards the sky, again.

"Hold it! You're running away?!" Ichigo screamed as the then began to run towards Ganju.

"The hell I am! You dandelion!" Ganju screamed after landing on the boar. "I'll settle the score with you tomorrow, count on it! Until then, wait there quietly!" He threw his arm out to make his sentence more demanding as he sat on the running boar.

He and Bonnie-chan were far from the group and now could not be seen well enough due to the smoke, but you could hear his last statement that he shouted.

"Don't turn into a seed and float away to escape! Let's go, guys!"

"Wha-Don't be ridiculous!" Ichigo screamed, showing how extremely pissed he was as he pointed out his right hand towards the boar-riding man. "That's MY-"

Sadly, Ichigo was interrupted when all the other boar-riding men began to ride past him. In the end, Ichigo was on the ground, coughing his heart out. He got up from the ground and pointed again.

"He's gone..." Orihime said as she and the rest went towards Ichigo.

"Oi, Ichigo. You can put your hand back down," Tsukiko said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Ishida simply fixed his glasses and placed his left hand on Ichigo's right shoulder while saying, "That sucks. I don't know what to say..."

Tsukiko walked up towards Ichigo's left and took a quick glimpse on his face. She sighed as she began to count down. "Three...two...one."

"Goddammit! WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS?!"

The female Shinigami sighed and said, "You guys can go back in. I'll deal with Ichigo."

Chad and Ishida nodded their heads and retreated back to the Elder's house, but Orihime stayed put. "Tsukiko-chan?" She said.

"It's okay, Orihime. I can deal with Ichigo. Go back inside and get some rest. I know that you need it," Tsukiko said with a smile as she looked at Orihime.

Orihime simply nodded her head and walked back inside the house. Tsukiko sighed as she looked back at the fuming strawberry right next to her. Ichigo was mumbling away thinking of ways to get Ganju back. More specifically, how to kill him.

"Ichigo," Tsukiko said. No response. "Ichigo..." She tried again. All she got was more mumbling from the teen next to her. A stress mark appeared on her head as she screamed, "Ichigo!"

Finally, Ichigo looked towards Tsukiko and said, "Oh, you're still out here."

She sweat dropped and said, "Yes I am still out here. Are you calm now?" She asked. But as soon as she finished, Ichigo had a fit, yet again.

Tsukiko sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair. 'Boy, this guy is really stubborn. Now what is the best way to calm a guy down?'

Instantly, a thought came into her head. She got on her toes and placed a quick kiss on his cheek. She then made it look like if nothing happened. But boy did Ichigo stop complaining. Not only that, but his face was red.

"C'mon Ichigo. It's time for bed," Tsukiko said as she walked back towards the house. She stopped when she didn't hear any footsteps behind her. She tilted her head towards the side and said, "Are you coming?"

All Ichigo was able to do was nod his head and walk behind her. Once inside, the whole place was dark. Everyone had gone to sleep and there was two empty futons waiting for them. Both were right next to each other.

Tsukiko took off her shoes and headed towards the futon as Ichigo did the same.

"Hey, Tsukiko," Ichigo whispered.

"Yeah?" Tsukiko whispered back as she laid down on the futon.

Ichigo laid down on his futon and faced towards Tsukiko. He then said, "You have my back, right?"

She turned onto her side so that she was facing him, "As long as you have mine."

He smiled at her answer and said, "Good, 'cause I'll always have yours."

Tsukiko gave out a small laugh and said, "Thanks. Now, let's go to sleep. Night, Ichigo."

"Good night, Tsukiko."

The next morning, Tsukiko groaned. She was having a peaceful sleep when screaming suddenly had awoken her. She moved to her side, hoping that it was just a dream that the screaming was coming from. Normally she was a heavy sleeper, but in this case, it was a different story.

"He'll think I ran away!" She heard a male say.

"Let him think it!" Another said.

Suddenly, she snapped her eyes open. Her eyes turned dark. A scream of pain was heard as she slowly began to sit up. It was then and there everyone finally took notice that Tsukiko was awake. And by the looks of their faces, they were freaked out.

Tsukiko's eyes were dark and blank. No emotion was seen behind her red eyes and her hair was a mess. It didn't help that there were two specific strands of hair sticking upwards, making it look like horns.

She got up from her futon and walked towards Ichigo, who was sitting on the floor and a large scratch mark on his face. She kneeled down, facing him as she said with no emotion, "Who screamed?"

Everyone, including Yoruichi, pointed towards Ichigo. Her eyes glared at the boy in front of her, but then she screamed, "Idiot!"

With that came a punch to the head, adding another injury to his current list. Tsukiko then got up from the floor and stretched her body. While doing so, she looked at everyone in front of her who had a scared look on their face.

"What?" She asked as she flattened her hair.

"Nothing," was all that the group said.

Once they all calmed down, Yoruichi spoke and said, "Has so much blood rushed to your head that you've forgotten our original goal? Damn fool. Don't tell me you've forgotten Rukia's life depends on our journey."

Ichigo began to lift himself off the ground and sat down as the cat continued, "We don't have time for a chest-thumping contest between you and that guy. If you understand, then get ready to move out!"

'Why is it that this cat is always right?' Tsukiko sighed as she walked outside and waited for everyone else. Even though she was out there for just a few seconds, she got bored and jumped up towards the rooftop.

The air felt nice as it flew threw her hair as she saw all of Rukongai. It was a beautiful view, in her opinion as she saw the sun fully rising. Even though her favorite time of day was night and watching the sunset, she still found the sunrise beautiful as well. She stood there for almost another few minutes when she heard footsteps. She let out one last sigh and jumped down the roof.

"Are we heading out now?" Tsukiko asked the person next to her as soon as her feet touched the ground.

"Yes, Takeshi. We're leaving as soon as Yoruichi-san gets a map from the village Elder." Ishida explained to her as he stood next to her.

"Oh. Okay," Tsukiko simply said. The two waited outside until four figures and a cat walked out of the house. "Thank you for your hospitality, sir." Tsukiko bowed as she thanked the Elder.

"My pleasure, young one. I hope that your journey goes well. Take care, all of you." With that, the Elder went back inside his home.

Tsukiko then turned and faced her fellow teammates and said as she raised her right arm to the sky and said, "Alright! Time for our grand adventure to start." And with that she walked away from the group.

Behind her, everyone sweat dropped. "Do you think she is bipolar?" Ishida asked as he watched his Shinigami classmate walk away, in the _wrong_ direction.

"I have no idea," Ichigo replied. 'But she does look cute when she is like that.' He thought to himself as he watched her walk away.

"Tsukiko-chan! You're going the wrong way!" Orihime shouted. Immediately, Tsukiko stopped and quickly walked back towards the group. She rubbed the back of her neck as she said,

"Oh, I knew that." Once again, everyone sweat dropped. She brought her arm back down and said, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go."

"Are we there yet?" Tsukiko whined as she was walking right next to Orihime. At first, they walked through the village at Rukongai and suddenly they ended up a long distance away from the village.

"Hey. It looks like we've come a long way from the village," Ichigo said as he observed their surroundings. "Is this really the right way?" After watching Ishida ignoring him and continue walking, Ichigo shouted towards him. "Hey!"

"Be quiet!" Ishida said as he turned to face Ichigo. He then pulled out the map and said, "According to the map the elder gave us, it's definitely around here. If you've got complaints, why don't _you_ walk up front?"

"Well, I'm not _complaining_, just..." Ichigo had begun saying.

Orihime then brought up something that made Tsukiko think, "Shiba Kuukaku-san must live out here because he wants to keep his identity secret."

"Sorry, but no." Yoruichi said who was currently perched upon Tsukiko's shoulder. "It's just the fool's nature...to prefer places like this. Tsukiko, you lead. Ishida, give her the map."

Tsukiko nodded her head as she was given the map. She began to walk forwards, listening to the cats directions. Tsukiko then turned her head around to look at the others to tell them to start walking.

"Don't worry...The rolling stone may change addresses like changing underwear, but...the house, at least, always looks the same. If I see it, I'll recognize it instantly."

"What do you mean by that?" Tsukiko asked.

"You'll just have to trust me," was all that the cat said.

"Instantly?" Ichigo asked as he walked behind Tsukiko and next to Orihime. A sweat drop was present above his head.

"Yes, yes, instantly."

The group kept walking for a while more. It was probably silent for a few minutes, when Yoruichi told Tsukiko to stop. Tsukiko did so and the cat hopped off her shoulder.

"Holy crap," Tsukiko said as she saw the house in front of her. Not too long, the others joined near her as the cat said,

"Oh, there it is. That's it."

"Th-" Ichigo said.

"That's..." Ishida spoke next.

"Whoooa, that's cooooool!" Orihime shouted in delight as she saw the house.

All Chad did was remain silent and groaned a tiny bit.

The house in front of them looked like any normal house would, except for some _large _alterations. In front of the house were two giant arms that were holding a banner. On that banner, _Shiba Kuukaku_ was written on it.

"See? Instantly recognizable, no?" Yoruichi grinned. Meanwhile behind the cat, Ichigo and Ishida were in a state of shock.

"Whether it's instantly recognizable or not isn't the problem!" Ichigo said.

"The idea that he likes places with no other people is probably a lie, too!" Ishida thought up as a response. "They just won't let him live in town because he builds houses like that!"

"That's _GOTTA_ be the reason!"

"So this time, it's a person's arms holding the banner. Quite well done."

"What you mean, Yoruichi? Does this person always have a different theme?" Tsukiko asked as she looked down at the cat.

Behind her, Ishida and Ichigo said together, with a large amount of sweat drops, "Every time...the theme is different?!"

"What I mean is that it always changes up depending on Kuukaku's mood." The cat explained.

Tsukiko then bent down and whispered to the cat, "Shiba Kuukaku is a woman huh?" All the cat did was grin and say,

"Come on, let's go."

"Wheeee!" Orihime shouted as she followed Tsukiko and Yoruichi.

"Hmmm," was all that Chad had said as he began to walk behind the girls and the cat.

Ichigo and Ishida remained frozen in their spots.

'We're about to enter that said excuse for a house?!' Ishida thought as more sweat drops appeared on his head.

Ichigo, with the same or more amounts of sweat drops on his head, thought, 'I don't want _anyone_ to see me going into that house!'

"What's wrong with you two? Hurry up!" Tsukiko shouted towards the two boys that didn't move a muscle.

"...Okay..." Both Ishida and Ichigo said at the same time with a large sweat drop on the back of their heads.

Ichigo walked to the group and stood next to Tsukiko. He looked behind him and saw that Ishida didn't move one bit. "Hey, Ishida! I understand you not wanting to go, but...hurry up!"

After that was said, Ichigo and Tsukiko walked together ahead of the group as Ishida took the rear while saying, "What's with that?!"

While walking towards the house Tsukiko looked up and took notice of the extremely tall chimney. "What is up with that?" She said to no one in particular as she looked at the chimney. Apparently, Ishida was having the same thoughts and he took notice that the end of the chimney was capped.

They kept walking until a rather loud voice shouted, "HALT!"

Ichigo and Tsukiko, not knowing whether its and enemy or not, grabbed the hilts of their Zanpakutou's.

"Who are you infidels?!" A man shouted as he stood on top of the fisted hand that was towards their left. Across from him, another man stood up as well and said,

"What strange garb you wear! And I see that two of you are Shinigamis!"

Both men jumped down from their post and landed right in front of Ichigo and Tsukiko. They both wore red hats on the top of their heads, which made them look like genies, in Tsukiko's opinion and they had on a kimono looking type shirt that reached down towards their ankles. Both men appeared to be twins of some sort but were able to be told apart by the color of the kimono. The one on the left had beige, yellow looking color while the one on the right looked to be a silvery white color.

"Suspicious strangers," the one with the beige color began, "I, Koganehiko and..."

"I, Shiroganehiko..." the one with the white said.

"...shall never let you pass!" They both said together.

This time, Shiroganehiko said, "Begone!"

"Otherwise, you shall end up dying here!" Koganehiko finished the warning.

"More gatekeepers huh?" Tsukiko said as she let the grip from her Zanpakutou's go.

"Man, Soul Society's full of hassles," Ichigo said as he too released his grip.

Suddenly, Yoruichi just popped out of behind Ichigo's legs and this certainly caught the attention of the twins in front of them. Yoruichi simply smiled and pointed towards herself.

"YORUICHI-DONO!" The twins shouted.

"Looks like they know you, eh Yoruichi," Tsukiko said as the cat jumped up to her shoulders.

"Of course they know me," the cat simply said with a smirk.

"Why didn't you tell us that you were with Yoruichi-dono?" Shiroganehiko said.

"Because you didn't even let us speak," Ichigo and Tsukiko said together.

"Well, come, come! I'm sure the master would like to see you." Koganehiko said as he began to lead the group into the house. Immediately once they were in, the group had to go down some stairs.

"Downwards stairs as soon as you enter?!" Ishida questioned. "This house is one weird thing after another."

"I'd say the same thing about your outfit, Ishida," Tsukiko whispered and Ichigo chuckled once he heard it.

"I wonder how you get to the upper floors." Orhime wondered out loud as she observed her surroundings.

"Oh dear, we were so rude to you. We had no idea you were Yoruichi-dono's companions." Koganehiko said as he led the group further in the house. "Please forgive our insolence."

Tsukiko laughed a bit and said, "It's alright."

'We ain't no _companions_,' Ichigo thought in his head.

"It's fine. Just like Tsukiko said," Yoruichi spoke as the cat walked down the stairs. "I'm partly to blame for not contacting you beforehand."

"As you wish," Koganehiko said as they finally reached the lower level of the house. "You're so great, and so thoughtful."

They walked a few more paces, when Koganehiko stopped in front of a sliding door and said, "Please wait here a moment." Suddenly, there was some sort of tapping coming from inside the room and he said, "Y-Yes Master! Yes, right away, Kuukaku-sama!"

Everyone waited for Koganehiko to slide the door open. And once he did, everyone was finally able to see the infamous Shiba Kuukaku. Yoruichi was the first to walk in and soon after that, Tsukiko did. It was then and there that Tsukiko's thoughts were now proven correct.

Shiba Kuukaku was in fact a _woman_. She was wearing a white long skirt and at the hem of it was a red outlining. Around her waist looked to be a brown belt. The arch of her feet and her ankles were bandaged up. She had on a red halter top that had a symbol on it. Most likely her family's symbol. Her left arm had a tattoo, which Tsukiko found fascinating, seeing that she would love to have one someday. Her right arm was a fake one that seemed to be made out of wood and it was being held in place by a bandage that was wrapped around her shoulder. The woman had a weapon of some sort on her back. She had black hair that was wrapped around some bandages and blue-green looking eyes.

"Yo. Long time no see, Yourichi." Shiba Kuukaku spoke as she rested against some purple pillows and sat on top of a red blanket.

"K-Kuukaku's a..." Ichigo began shouting.

"...a woman?!" Everyone except Tsukiko and Yoruichi said.

Tsukiko turned around and said with an amused look, "You guess really should pay attention to some of the details."

"No one said she was a man." Yoruichi said, "And Tsukiko is right. Pay attention to details more."

"What's with the kids?" Kuukaku asked.

Yoruichi sat down and Tsukiko followed along to show respect. "Actually, Kuukaku, I've today to ask a favor."

"You generally do when you come here." There was a pause of silence as the two stared at one another. Then Kuukaku spoke again asking, "Is it trouble?"

"Probably."

Kuukaku chuckled and said with a grin, "Long time since we've talked like this, too. Okay. Let's hear it. I _love_ trouble."

'Shiba Kuukaku, you are becoming my hero.' Tsukiko thought in her head with a grin.

"I see. I think I get the situation." Kuukaku said, after hearing the entire story. She was now currently smoking off a pipe. She brought the end of the pipe towards her mouth and inhaled some of the smoke and soon after that exhaled. "A'right. I accept."

"Really?" Yoruichi said with excitement.

"Yeah. And if Urahara's got his teeth in this, too, I couldn't say no if I wanted to." Kuukaku then stood up and continued talking, "I trust you, but...that doesn't mean I trust those kids. Among other things, as insurance, I'm gonna stick one of my minions with you."

"Minion?" Ichigo asked.

"Yah." She then began to walk towards another sliding door towards her left and said, "Well, I call him a minion, but it's my little brother. He's still useless brat, though." Once she reached the door she shouted out, "Hey, you ready?"

A very familiar voice spoke from behind the door saying, "U-uh huh, wait a sec."

"I'm opening it, be on your best behavior!" She commanded.

"G-Gotcha."

Then she slid the door open and there was a guy bowing towards the group. "A pleasure to meet you." He said. "I am called Shiba Ganju. Please think of me if you need anything."

'Oh the irony,' Tsukiko thought with a giant sweat drop.

Everyone, except Tsukiko and Kuukaku, were in shock. Ichigo and Ganju especially looked shocked. And as fast as they could go, the two stood up and pointed at each other, shouting.

"What? You two know each other?" Kuukaku asked.

"I think that is an understatement, Kuukaku-sama," Tsukiko said. Why you may ask did Tsukiko include –sama at the end of Kuukaku's name? Because Tsukiko respected the woman.

"Ah. And who may you be?" Kuukaku asked.

"Takeshi Tsukiko. Pleased to meet you, Kuukaku-sama." Tsukiko said as she bowed a little.

"Oi, Yoruichi." Kuukaku called out towards the cat.

"Yes?"

Kuukaku then pointed to Tsukiko while grinning, "I like this kid. She has some spunk in her."

Suddenly, a fight broke out and everyone just watched. Ichigo and Ganju threw a punch at one another and hit each other in the face. Ichigo went after him, after recovering from the hit, grabbed Ganju's head and said, "You bastard, take a flying leap!" Ichigo threw him towards a door and Ganju crashed into it, breaking it.

Ichigo went running after him, grinning, but the grin was gone when Ganju said, "Take that! I'll tear you apart!" A kick to the face sent Ichigo flying back.

"What?!"

Tsukiko sighed as she stood next to Kuukaku. She watched the fighting and would also take glances at Kuukaku. The woman besides her looked calm and didn't even care about the fighting that was going on in her house.

Suddenly, Ganju did the worst thing ever. He attacked Ichigo where the sun didn't shine. With wide eyes, Tsukiko stared at Ganju.

'I'm gonna kill you Ganju if Ichigo isn't going to be able to have kids! Wait, what?!' Tsukiko blushed at her own comment.

More and more breaking of objects happened inside. Tsukiko just kept on having sweat drops on her head as Kuukaku smoked some more. Suddenly, her pipe was sent flying through the air thanks to Ganju. Tsukiko took notice that she was about to snap and just in case, tried to calm her down by reaching for the pipe. But it was too late; the pipe had been stepped on and now broken.

'Oh, shit,' Tsukiko thought as she brought her hands out to create a shield for herself.

"You bastards..." Kuukaku shouted as she summoned her spirit energy to her left hand for an attack. She shouted as she slammed her left hand to the ground. Just in the knick of time, Tsukiko created a bubble shield around her by having both her arms out and palms facing out. Although the bubble was black, Tsukiko was able to see what was going on.

Once Kuukaku's hand made contact with the floor, a large blast erupted and it hit everything that was in its path. Tsukiko heard the screaming of both Ichigo and Ganju and she watched the rest of her group run outside of the house. The blast was a bright orange color that seemed to be too bright for her, even through her bubble. She closed her eyes and just kept concentrating on the shield. Tsukiko opened her eyes once again when she heard Kuukaku speak.

"What the hell's wrong with you two?! You start beatin' each other the second you meet?! That's not safe!" Tsukiko then took notice the room that they were currently ate was destroyed. Ichigo was on the ground face down and Ganju as well. The only difference was that Kuukaku was stepping on Ganju's head.

"You jacked the house up! Look! Look!" She kicked her younger brother twice in the head.

"But Sis..." Ganju tried to speak.

"Don't talk back!"

Tsukiko had a large sweat drop on the back of her head as she released the shield that was around her. Once it was gone, she looked at Kuukaku, who was looking at her other three teammates with an anger mark on her head as she said,

"You got somethin' to say?!"

"No ma'am."

Tsukiko began to walk over to her group when she saw Ichigo stir. He lifted is head up as he thought, 'What just happened? Both the brother _and_ the sister...'

Ichigo then began to panic and had a major sweat drop once Kuukaku saw him up. She walked towards him and grabbed his head, lifting him up from the ground. She was up in his face as she spoke.

"Hey, shithead! This is my house. If you've got a problem with how I do things, get the hell out."

Tsukiko couldn't help but begin laughing once she saw Ichigo's face at a close range. He immediately apologized. "I-I'm very sorry."

"Okay. As long as you understand." She let go of his head and walked towards Tsukiko's direction.

"Wow, Kuukaku-sama. You have to teach me how you were able to do an attack like that!" Tsukiko said with such amazement.

Kuukaku smirked and said, "Maybe."

It was then and there that Ichigo collapsed to the ground. He swiftly and quickly crawled towards Ganju and said,

"Your sister's scary."

"Ain't she?"

"Okay, everyone stand up!" Kuukaku commanded.

"Yes, ma'am!" Ichigo, Ganju and even Koganehiko said.

"Koganehiko, you go outside and help Shiroganehiko prepare."

"Understood!" He saluted and ran outside to help the other man.

"The rest of you shut up and follow me!"

The group followed behind Kuukaku, who was leading, and Ganju, who was behind her. Tsukiko and Ichigo were not too far from the man and the others were behind them. Tsukiko then tugged on Ichigo's shihakushō and whispered,

"Are you alright?"

Ichigo looked at her and nodded his head. "I'm fine."

"Well, I was worried about you since you did take a beating from Kuukaku-sama."

"Why do you call her that?"

Tsukiko lifted her left hand up to her chin and said, "Well, I respect her given the fact that I haven't met a strong and bold woman like her for quite a while. Besides, I think she is freakin' awesome. She might teach me that move that she did that knocked you both out." She smiled at the end of her sentence.

"So you're saying that you think this, this woman is cool because she kicked mine and her brother's ass at the same time?"

"Yup!" She grinned.

Ichigo sighed and said, "You're a strange one."

Tsukiko then got close to his face and said, "And that's why you _like_ me, huh?"

Immediately Ichigo blushed. Tsukiko began to laugh but was stopped when Ishida spoke.

"Amazing," Ishida said. "How come there's light even though we're underground? I didn't see any power facilities."

"We have firefly creepers in the holes in the ceiling and inside the frames on both sides." Kuukaku answered.

"Firefly creepers? Is that a plant or something that only exists in Soul Society?"

'Ishida, it's obvious that she means fireflies.' Tsukiko thought in her head.

"We're here." Kuukaku completely ignored his question as she stopped walking. "This is it."

In front of them was a door that in red said, _Authorized Personnel Only_.

"Open it, Ganju!"

"Yes, ma'am!" As Ganju went to open the door, Ishida just walked towards Kuukaku and said,

"Excuse me!" But Ichigo came and closed his mouth with his hand and said,

"You idiot!"

"What're you doing?!"

"Don't upset her." Ichigo whispered. "Okay?"

Tsukiko waited besides Kuukaku now since Ichigo dragged Ishida to the ground. In front of her, Ganju shouted out "Heave-HO!" and opened the door. From what Tsukiko saw, it looked like a rather large pole, but it was dark so she wasn't too sure with her answer she came up with.

She walked with her group as Kuukaku, Ganju, and Yoruichi walked ahead of them. Everyone stopped but Kuukaku kept walking.

"What the heck is that?" Ichigo asked.

"It's huge!" Ishida said.

"Wow," was all that Tsukiko said.

Kuukaku kept walking closer to the object and she spoke as she got closer, "This is how I'm gonna get you guys into the Seireitei. From the sky, that is."

"THE SKY?!" Ichigo and Ishida said at the same time.

"My name is Shiba Kuukaku, Rugonkai's Number One Firewords Maker!"

'Oh this is going to be awesome!!!' Tsukiko grinned with excitement.


	29. Kuukaku's Training

**Hey people! Sorry that I haven't been able to update. Reason to this is because of school and the fact that I have finals next week. But after that I shall be free to update as much as I want!**

XxXLIFEafterDEATHXxX: **Thanks for adding this story to your Story Alert List!!**

foxg2rl7: **Thanks so much for adding this story to both your Story Alert and Favorite List!!**

Black-HunterXX: **Lol, Tsukiko has her hyper and insane moments. Aren't those just fun!**

fmafangirl1415: **Thanks so much! I'll try to update sooner. **

**Disclaimer: Bleach, character and plot, belong to Tite Kubo. Any other character belongs to me. Thanks and enjoy the chapter!!

* * *

**

Chapter 29: Kuukaku's Training

Tsukiko stared in wonderment at the in front if her. She wasn't the only one who looked at the object above.

"What the heck is that?" Ichigo said as he also watched the large object.

"It's huge!" Ishida said.

Kuukaku walked ahead from the group and said, "This is how I'm gonna get you guys into the Seireitei. From the sky." She said as she pointed towards the large pillar-like object.

"THE SKY?!" Ichigo shouted out with a large sweat drop; Ishida shouted with dark lined coming down his face; Tsukiko shouted with delight.

"My name is Shiba Kuukaku, Rukongai's Number One Fireworkds Maker!"

"Fireworks maker?" Ichigo questioned.

"That's right. Koganehiko, Shiroganehiko...Raise it up!" She shouted towards the ceiling. Apparently, the two twins managed to hear from the large distance since the ground suddenly began to shake.

"What?!" Ichigo and Tsukiko said at the same time. Tsukiko had her legs opened in order to manage to remain balanced. That was what she learned in dance. Have legs opened and find your center to remain in balance.

"What the heck's going on?" Orihime wondered as she tried to keep balance.

Everyone was took notice that the floor began to move. The weird thing was that it was not moving sideways, it was moving upwards.

"The floor is rising," Tsukiko shouted to everyone as she tried to concentrate on balancing.

"Th-The ceiling...is opening..." Ishida said.

"Is this for real?!" Ichigo couldn't believe it.

Tsukiko heard a cracking sound and she looked up. The tan colored chimney suddenly broke revealing its true identity. In a matter of seconds they were able to see the sky, the grass, everything in general. From a distance, she saw Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko. Finally, the shaking stopped.

"Wet your pants, kiddies?" Kuukaku mockingly asked. "This is Shiba Kuukaku's own personal giant fireworks platform:-"

"The Kakaku Cannon!" Ganju interrupted his sister as he said the name instead. Right after he said it, he was kicked in the head by Kuukaku, who looked a bit upset. Well that was an understatement.

"Don't say it before me!" She had an anger mark on her head. Everyone just stared blankly at Ganju who was on the floor saying sorry. Kuukaku just ignored his apology and continued speaking, "Speechless, huh?"

"How can you joke at a time like this?!" Ishida said.

"How can you not?" Tsukiko just said in amusement.

Ishida just glared at her for a second and said, "I don't know if you're a fireworks maker or what," He fixed his glasses as he continued, "but shooting us up with that thing is insa-" He was sadly, but funnily interrupted when a round crystal-like ball hit him in the face.

Tsukiko immediately began laughing as it rolled out of his face and into Ichigo's hands. Once she calmed down, she peered towards Ichigo and looked at the ball. It was a bluish color and there was a red swirl that made it look like a W, but also like a bird.

"What's this?" Ichigo asked.

"It's a spirit orb." Kuukaku answered.

"A spirit orb? What does it do?" Tsukiko asked as she touched the orb and removed her hand after she felt the smoothness of it.

"Try touchin' your palm to it and puttin' in some spirit power." Kuukaku said as she pointed to the orb.

Ichigo placed his hand at the top and the bottom of the orb and said, "Like this?" He began moving it about and pressing his palms down. Moment after moment, he began to get frustrated until finally,

"How do you put in spirit energy?"

"Huh?! What're you talkin' about? You go like this..." She then held out her hand and suddenly a light orb appeared. "If you're a Shinigami, you can use kido, right?" The light then disappeared when Yoruichi began to talk,

"Well...As I told you earlier, he suddenly became a Shinigami. They both just did. So he can't use kido at all, but she can use her spirit power."

"Say what?!"

Ichigo continued trying to put in his spirit power into the orb as Tsukiko and everyone kept watching him. "Like _this_?" He asked as he went on and on.

"Hey Ichigo, let me try." Tsukiko asked as she held out her hands.

"Hold up," Ichigo said.

"Freakin' useless..." Kuukaku said irritated. "Ganju, show 'im how."

"Yes, ma'am!" Ganju said as soon as he got up from the ground. He went straight towards Ichigo and jumped at him while saying, "Gimme that!"

As soon as Ganju was close, Ichigo moved his hand away, keeping the ball out of his reach. Ichigo kept keeping the orb away from him as Tsukiko sighed in annoyance.

"You bastard...You wanna go, bitch, huh?!"

"Sure, come and get it if you can." Ichigo taunted Ganju back. "I'd rather die than learn from you, dumbass!"

Kuukaku was ready to strike again, but Tsukiko said, "Allow me." Raising her right hand, she punched both Ichigo and Ganju in the head. "Jeez, can we move along!"

"Thanks, kid. Now where was I? Oh yeah. Quit that shit!" She yelled at them after thanking Tsukiko.

"We're sorry..." They both said. Ichigo then, reluctantly, gave him the orb. Once Ganju had his hands on the orb, he began his demonstration. Placing his palms on each side of the orb, he concentrated his spirit energy and soon it began to glow.

Everyone stared at him as he did the demonstration. One second the orb was glowing and then the next, a blue sphere now surrounded Ganju.

"W-What's that..." Ichigo said shocked.

Kuukaku walked up to the circular sphere and knocked on it. It sounded like glass when she did. "This is the cannonball."

"Cannonball?" Ishida questioned.

"Okay, listen up. You kiddies might think that wall's the only thing guarding the Seireitei, but you're wrong. The wall is made from a mineral called Bloodthirst Stone that's rare even in Soul Society." Kuukaku then went down onto her knees and placed what looked like a small rock. "This is a piece of it."

With her left hand, she slammed her fist down on it. It caused some dust from the cracks of the floor to rise and cover her hand. Once it cleared, the small rock was not harmed. Instead, there was a circle around it.

"What the?" Tsukiko said as she stared. 'That is rather impressing. This stone must have some properties that must create a shield.'

"As you can see, it completely blocks spirit power. So opening a hole in the wall with spirit power is impossible. On top o' that," She grabbed the stone off where it was sitting and once it was gone, the stand fell, "it puts out waves that dissolve spirit power from its severed edges. In other words, the Seireitei has a spherical barrier around it from up the sky to below the ground. And so, that's where this thing steps in."

Tsukiko turned her eyes away from Kuukaku and looked at the cannonball. Her eyes widened when she saw the state that Ganju was in.

"Kuukaku-sama," Tsukiko said.

"What is it?"

Tsukiko just simply pointed towards Ganju, thus resulting Kuukaku to look at her brother.

"S-Sis...I'm getting tir-"

"Deal with it!"

'Ouch that's harsh," Tsukiko thought as she continued listening to Kuukaku.

"This is the special hardening spirit-barrier-generating device I developed. In other words, if you all put spirit power into this spirit orb, you can create a cannonball that can momentarily punch through the barrier. We'll take that and fire it up with my Kakaku Cannon and drop inside the wall in one stroke, simple as that."

Tsukiko just closed her eyes and picture it. She saw the cannonball being shot out of the cannon and hitting the invisible shield. As soon as it hit, it went straight through.

"Any questions?" Kuukaku asked.

"Uh...um, so we-" Ichigo was about to ask a question, but...

"Okay then, you're dismissed! Go to the underground practice hall and practice how to concentrate your spirit power." Kuukaku said and the snapped her fingers.

"YES MASTER?" Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko appeared.

"Take 'em away!"

"Yes!" They both said.

Koganehiko suddenly grabbed Orihime by her stomach and Ishida by his cape. Shiroganehiko was holding Ichigo down while Tsukiko and Chad just watched. Tsukiko sweat dropped since Orihime was laughing about being carried and Ishida was shouting who knows what. Ichigo on the other hand...

"What the hell?! Don't touch me! Let go!"

"Listen, if even _one _of your breaks concentration, you'll _boom_ on the spot."

"What?!" Ichigo shouted as he was being carried by the tall man. Tsukiko simply just walked behind him, giggling at how funny he looked.

"Practice hard!" Kuukaku said.

"We will, Kuukaku-sama!" Tsukiko shouted to her.

"This ain't what I signed up for!" Ichigo shouted, and it was right directly into Tsukiko's ear.

"Ichigo, shut up!" Tsukiko said as she hit him in the head.

"Hey!"

She simply stuck her tongue out, but as soon as she pulled it back in, she laughed. They walked down towards the practice hall and soon they began to work on creating their own spheres.

Tsukiko stood a few feet away from everyone else. She held the round orb in her gloved hands and sighed. She already knew that this was going to be easy for her seeing that most of her training with Urahara dealt with spirit power.

"Man, if I only Kuukaku-sama can teach me that one move she did." And with that said, Tsukiko placed her hands on the sides of the orbs and closed her eyes. She felt her spirit energy move into the orb, causing it to begin to glow its light blue color. With the right amount of spirit energy, a sphere began to form.

Tsukiko opened her eyes and saw that the sphere was beginning to form around her. It, at first, seemed unstable but then it soon calmed down. It was a perfect circle.

"Very good, Tsukiko-dono!" Koganehiko said to her as he and his brother approached her.

"Now hold it for five minutes," Shiroganehiko said.

All Tsukiko did was nodded her head and kept on concentrating. It was going good for the first minute, but Tsukiko began to need to move from her spot or at least sit down. So without trying to break concentration, she began to try and sit down. Moving slowly, she managed to sit down without breaking her concentration.

It felt weird for her, just sitting inside of a sphere. 'I feel like a freakin' hamster in a hamster ball. Maybe I should just roll around in it.' She began to laugh, but because of that the sphere began to become unstable.

"Crap!" She focused again on the orb, waiting for the sphere around her to become stable.

Tsukiko heard footsteps and she looked up. Once again, Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko were in front of her.

"Excellent, Tsukiko-dono." Shiroganehiko praised her.

"You're done with your training," Koganehiko said.

"Thanks," Tsukiko said while returning her spirit energy back into her. She got up from the floor and handed the orb to Koganehiko. "By the way, where is Kuukaku-sama?"

"Master should be outside," The both simultaneously said.

"Thank you," She smiled and began to walk towards the door. But before getting there, she was looking at everyone else. Everyone was extremely concentrated on making the sphere work. Tsukiko looked at Ichigo and just wanted to laugh. He looked _very_ concentrated seeing that he kept on making funny faces as he tried to put his spirit energy into the spirit orb.

"Hey, Ichigo." Tsukiko smiled as she approached him.

Ichigo looked away from the orb and towards Tsukiko and said, "Oh, hey. You finished already?"

She nodded her head and said, "Yeah, seeing since it was this type of stuff that Urahara trained me in. How are you coming along?"

"I'm getting there."

"I'm sure you are. Well, I'm gonna go look for Kuukaku-sama right now."

He shook his head as he said, "Man I can't believe you think she is the greatest thing ever."

"I didn't exactly say that. I just said that I thought she was cool for being able to beat two guys up at the same time with just her bear hands." She smiled.

Ichigo just sweat dropped at her answer. "Well whatever you say."

"And whatever I say is right. Now I'll let you get back to practice. Good luck, Ichigo."

"Thanks Tsukiko."

Tsukiko smiled at him and left. She exited the room and walked up the stairs. The stairway up was long and quiet. But as quickly as she climbed up the stairs, she was able to see the light from the outside.

"You know, I really like this scenery." It was peaceful and calm. The sky was a beautiful shade of blue and there were a few clouds floating by and all that you would be able to see was hills of grass.

Tsukiko smiled and said, "Now it's time to find Kuukaku-sama." She walked towards the platform that held the Kakaku cannon. She walked in slow steps seeing that she had all the time in the world, for the time being. As she neared, she found the woman sitting down cross-legged and was just looking at the sky, like if she was thinking about something rather important.

"Kuukaku-sama?" Tsukiko said as she approached the woman.

"Oh. Tsukiko, right?" Kuukaku asked as she looked at the female Shinigami right in front of her.

"Right."

"What is it ya need? Shouldn't you be with the other brats practicing?" Kuukaku eyed her.

Tsukiko lifted her arm up and with her hand she scratched the back of her neck as she said, "Well, I kinda finished that already. So I was wondering, Kukkaku-sama if-"

"Just call me Kuukaku, kid. How was it that you already finished?" Kuukaku was now intrigued. 'If what Yoruichi said was true about her and boy barely becoming Shinigamis, how is it that she managed to finished before him?'

"Urahara trained me specifically on how to manage my spirit energy, since I have two different kinds."

'Two different kinds?' Kuukaku asked herself. She then patted the seat in front of her and said, "Sit down. I wanna know about these _two_ types of spirit energy."

Tsukiko nodded her head and took at seat. "Where do I start?" She asked herself before beginning. "Well, I have two different styles of spirit energy: the regular one that Shinigamis have and my Zanpakutous. Because of my Zanpakutou, I have magic based spirit energy since the spirit of my weapon is a magician."

"Really now? So you can already materialize it?"

"Yup!" Tsukiko said proudly. "Now that you know my spirit energy types, I was wondering if you can possibly teach me that move you did when you beat up Ichigo and Ganju?"

Kuukaku smirked as she recalled the recent from her head. As soon as she finished chuckling, she said, "Are you sure you wanna learn this move? Give me a reason as to why you want to learn this specific move."

Tsukiko pondered for a bit before saying, "I mostly deal with close range attacks. Since the Shikai of my Zanpakutou are sais, it would be rather easy for me to use this attack in a case of emergency. Also, I think it is really cool." Tsukiko grinned as soon as she finished explaining.

After Tsukiko's explanation, Kuukaku had a thinking face on. While the older woman had that facial expression on, Tsukiko had one that completely showed the anticipation. It was silent for about two minutes when Kuukaku spoke,

"Alright, I'll teach you my move. But first, show me that you can really summon your spirit power."

Tsukiko nodded her head quickly as she held out her right hand. She looked at the center of her glove and began to transport her spirit energy to that specific spot. In a matter of a few seconds, a black spark appeared. The black spark just kept on getting bigger and bigger when more of Tsukiko's spirit energy was being transferred. Finally, she was able to use her spirit energy to make an orb like the one that she had practiced with earlier.

"I'm impressed. Alright, I'll teach ya my move." Kuukaku said with a smirk.

"Really?! Awesome!" Tsukiko smiled and dropped her hand. And with that said and done, their training began.

"Alright the first thing you have to do is concentrate on taking your spirit power and moving it towards your dominant fist." Kuukaku explained as she now stood besides Tsukiko on the grass field.

"So in my case, it would be my right hand that I'll be transferring my spirit energy," Tsukiko mumbled to herself as she began to do so.

Kuukaku observed her and said, "Good. Now the next part will be focusing on your hand only. Try picturing it on fire."

And Tsukiko did that. She imagined seeing her right hand covered in red flames. It was like if the fire was the source of her power. But it really wasn't; it was her spirit energy. But something happened that Tsukiko didn't believe would happen. Her fisted hand was now covered in a red mixed with purple and black flames.

"Holy shi-"

"Do _not_ lose concentration!" Kuukaku shouted at her. "Now punch the ground with all you might."

Tsukiko lifted her hand up and quickly, punched her fist towards the ground. Flames erupted and it went for a few feet. Although it looked as if she had done it right, Tsukiko hadn't managed to make it quite an impact like Kuukaku did.

"Alright, that was fine for your first try. You made a mistake though and if I didn't tell you that you can lose concentration, you probably wouldn't have your hand now."

Tsukiko was now confused. "What do you mean?"

"You need to have concentration when working on your spirit energy. If you don't then there will be accidents. Now do it again."

And so, Tsukiko kept on training for the rest of the afternoon. There would be moments when she would be close to having the attack, but by not having the right amount of spirit energy, the attack would falter. The sun was beginning to set when Tsukiko lied down on the ground and out of breath.

"Hey, Kuukaku." She managed to breathe out.

"Yeah?"

"Does this attack even have a name to it?" She asked the woman.

Kuukaku lifted her left hand up to her chin and said, "Now that I think about it, I haven't named it."

"How can you not name an attack that you made?" Tsukiko sweat dropped at her answer.

"Dunno. I guess I wasn't even thinking about that." Kuukaku looked up at the sky and said, "You should go inside now. Dinner should be served soon."

Tsukiko simply nodded her head and lifted herself off the ground. Before walking away, she looked at Kuukaku and said, "Thank you for teaching me and for helping us out. You have no idea how much this means to us." With that said, Tsukiko walked back towards the house.

By the time Tsukiko was walking down the stairs, her stomach let out a rather loud growl. She blushed in embarrassment and walked towards where the others were training. Sliding the door open, she leaned against the doorway. Right now they were showing Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko what they can do.

The first person to go up was Orihime. She actually did really well. She put the right amount of spirit energy and the light blue sphere surrounded her perfectly. The next person was Ishida. The problem was his was that the shape was narrow. After Ishida, it was Chad. Now Chad's sphere was powerful but a bit unstable. Lastly it was Ichigo's turn. He tried his hardest inserting his spirit energy into the orb. It was barely producing the sphere but...

"This is awful!" Shiroganehiko shouted at Ichigo.

"Absolutely!" Koganehiko said right after.

"What is that you made?!"

"I cannot help but think you have NO talent."

"NO talent!" The two said together.

Now Ichigo, being who he is, got a rather large anger mark and pulled his left arm back. As soon as he pulled his arm back enough, he threw it with such a powerful force. Poor Shiroganehiko was the one who got hit right in the face.

"SILVER!" Koganehiko shouted.

"I TOLD you I didn't get it!" Ichigo shouted.

Tsukiko sighed as she shook her head. 'I'm starting to wonder why I like Ichigo.'

'You like him for many reasons, Tsukiko-chan.' Kuro Maho said inside of Tsukiko's head.

'Do you know anything about invading people's personal bubbles?' Tsukiko sarcastically replied back to the magician, who somehow got in her head.

'Nope!'

Tsukiko rubbed her temples and thought back, 'So are you going to teach me anything anytime soon?'

'Maybe. I was thinking about probably just starting to train you for Bankai.'

'Sweet!'

Suddenly, someone walked up next to her. It was one of them boar-riding guys that she had beaten up.

'Good times,' Tsukiko thought with a smirk.

"Um...Boss, dinner's ready, at least." He announced to Ganju.

"Finally! I am starving!" Tsukiko said as she rubbed her poor talking stomach that kept telling her to feed itself.

Ganju jumped in surprise. Apparently he didn't even notice that she was behind him the entire time.

"How long have you been there?" He asked her as he held his chest where his heart was at.

"Not that long," She grinned.

Ganju just ignored the grin and said, "Hey you guys, dinner's ready. You're hunry, ain't ya?"

"Now that you mention it..." Ishida began saying.

"You didn't get food in Rukongai, did ya? The people there can't use spirit power, so they don't get hungry. Go eat."

"But he's still..." Ishida started, yet again.

"Nevermind me," Ichigo flat out said. "Go ahead and eat. As soon as I do this, I'll come, too."

"Are you sure?" Tsukiko asked him.

"Yeah. Go ahead."

"Oh, okay then, we'll go ahead." Ishida said.

With that said Tsukiko turned away from the others and began to walk towards where the food was at. Since she had no idea where she was going, she decided to use her nose and follow the scent of where the food was possibly at. Her nose led her and she finally found the place. Once she entered, she immediately sweat dropped.

On the wall were two scrolls. The first one said, "The Strong Eat", while the other one said, "The Weak Are Meat".

"How inspirational," Tsukiko said with a tiny hint of sarcasm in her voice. She suddenly felt someone's spiritual energy and turned around. It was the same blue haired guy that told them that dinner was ready.

"Hello. Sorry about what happened the night before. We were just trying to protect Big Bro." He said to me as he walked in.

"Oh, it's no problem. And I should be apologizing since I did beat you up." Tsukiko said with a sweat drop on the back of her head.

"It's alright. Now why don't you sit down and I'll bring you something to eat."

"Thanks," Tsukiko said as she sat down on the floor.

She waited for a minute when suddenly she heard footsteps. Looking towards the door, again, she saw Chad, Ishida, and Orihime.

"Hey guys!" Tsukiko smiled and waved at them.

"Tsukiko-chan!" Orihime said happily with a wave.

The other two males just nodded towards her direction and took a seat. Food was brought to them and immediately, they began to eat.

It wasn't long before they were done and had said, "Thanks for the meal."

"Oh, Inoue-san, are you finished?" Ishida asked Orihime as he looked at her tray filled with food.

"Huh?" Tsukiko looked from the distance since she was sitting next to Chad on his right. It was indeed barely touched.

"Y-Yeah, I'm already fu-" Orihime began but her stomach let out a loud growl.

Tsukiko then suddenly sweat dropped when she saw Orihime punching her stomach to shut up.

"See? I'm full!"

"Orihime, you really didn't have to do that." Tsukiko said as she and the two boys had yet again sweat dropped.

"We'll just pretend we didn't hear it." Ishida said.

"Actually, I was thinking of taking some down to Kurosaki-kun." She said.

Tsukiko was just about to say something but Ishida had to say something before her.

"Now that you mention it, Kurosaki's still-" A loud explosion interrupted Ishida. Tsukiko immediately got up and ran towards the training room.

'Ichigo!' Tsukiko thought as she ran. In front of her was now Kuukaku who was running towards the same direction. She saw Kuukaku stop and then looked towards the reason. Ganju was on the floor, just staring towards the direction of the training room.

"What happened?! Hey! Ganju!" Kuukaku demanded for an answer.

"S-S-Sorry, Sis."

'Huh?' Tsukiko thought as she heard him. 'Why is he apologizing?'

"I...just showed him how to do it once...I didn't think this would happen..."

By now, everyone was behind Tsukiko and they eagerly watched as Kuukaku slid the door open. She and everyone were in shock.

Surrounding Ichigo was a giant sphere of spirit energy. It was both an amazing and fearful sight to look upon.

"You idiot! Solidify your spirit power already!" Kuukaku shouted towards Ichigo. And as soon as she did shout, Ichigo began to do what she commanded. The sphere was now the normal size.

"I did it!" Ichigo shouted.

"You did it, Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime praised him.

'I should be the one doing that,' Tsukiko said in a somewhat jealous tone.

"Yeah!" But as soon as Ichigo barely said that one word, the sphere began to become unstable.

"Idiot!" Kuukaku pointed at him. "Don't lose your concentration!"

"Huh?"

The sphere began to crack and then it shattered into a billion pieces. Ichigo then shouted since he was now being attacked by an angry Kuukaku.

"Weren't you listening to what I said?!" She shouted with an anger mark on her face. Her right leg was now on top of Ichigo's head as she continued to lecture him. "Huh?! I said if you break your concentration, you'd go _BOOM_! Didn't I?!"

"Yes ma'am, you certainly did." Ichigo pathetically said.

"That's right." Ganju said as he continued picking at his nose. "In the first place, you-" A shadow loomed over him and then he was punched.

"You're just as guilty, you dumbass!" Kuukaku screamed at her brother. "Neither of you gets dinner!"

"Why?!" Ichigo shouted.

"You're including me with _him_?!" Ganju said as he pointed towards Ichigo.

"Shut up! Got a problem wit' it?!"

"Owowowowow!"

"Understood, ma'am. Understood, ma'am."

'Man when will those two ever learn?" Tsukiko thought as she walked towards Kuukaku.

"Kuukaku, I think instead of taking away their dinner, maybe you should make them both clean up the room?" Tsukiko said as he placed her weight on her right leg.

Kuukaku placed a finger on her chin and said, "Hmm, that's not a bad idea. Okay, both you idiots begin cleaning!"

They groaned and did what they were told. Kuukaku then looked at the others and said, "What are you staring at?! Either help or get lost!"

Immediately, they ran off.

"Koganehiko, Shiroganehiko." Kuukaku said.

"Yes, Master!"

"Start making the preparations. As for you Tsukiko, let's got back to practicing."

"Yes ma'am!" Tsukiko said. She then looked towards Ichigo and Ganju and said with a wink, "Good luck cleaning."

"TSUKIKO!" The two shouted.


	30. Leaving and Splitting

**Hello one and all! I have a story to tell all of you about this certain chapter. So while I was writing this one certain chapter, I was just relaxing on my bed when I suddenly felt something on my shoulder. At first I ignored it, but then it happened again. So I look and guess what I found? A mouse was on my shoulder! The same one that I have been trying to capture. So I freaked and went to get a box. Luckily for me it was still on my bed, so I caught it. Then went outside in the cold and released it. Well that was my story for today. Now to the reviews!**

Black-HunterXX: **Haha evil Tsukiko is pretty funny. Lol, yeah she somehow turns out to be the funniest one there. Enjoy the chapter!**

fmafangirl1415: **Thanks!**

I'llxBexUrxEnigma2010: **Lol, I liked the suspenseful music u added. Glad that ur liking it! Enjoy the chapter!**

ToonyTwilight: **Thanks! And thank you times five for adding me, the story and all the others to your list!!! Hope you like the chapter!!**

**Disclaimer: Bleach, plot and characters, belong to Tite Kubo. Everyone/thing that doesn't belongs to me!

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**

Chapter 30: Leaving and Splitting

Not even a few seconds later did Ichigo fall flat to the ground. The others, Chad, Orihime and Ishida, were back already after they had run off. Kuukaku and Tsukiko were going to leave but Ganju said to Yoruichi as the cat approached Ichigo,

"What's wrong?"

"Don't worry, he's just sleeping. More importantly, you kids have a seat there."

'He got lucky that he passed out. Now he doesn't have to clean.' Tsukiko thought as she sat down.

"Ichigo may be sleeping, but we have no time. I will tell you the plan for when we break into the Seireitei. Mind it well and-" Yoruichi suddenly screamed as if it was just scared. Tsukiko immediately got up and saw the reason as to why the cat screamed.

"Oi vey," Tsukiko said with a sweat drop. Ichigo was holding onto the cat's tail so hard, that it was most likely to have some weird shape after being held on too tight. Orihime, Ishida and Chad tried to detach Ichigo from the tail but it didn't really help.

"Relax, Yoruichi. I'll get him to let go." Tsukiko moved next to Ichigo and began to stroke his hair. After stroking for a minute, Ichigo suddenly released his grip on the tail and drifted back to sleep. Tsukiko sighed and looked at Yoruichi, who was now crying over its tail.

"Kuukaku, can we go practice?"

Kuukaku looked at Tsukiko and nodded her head. Smiling, Tsukiko got up and headed outside for another hour or two of practice. As quickly as she practiced, she finished and went to sleep.

Waking up the next morning, Tsukiko thought, 'This is it.'

Standing up, she began to wake the others. One by one, everyone was up. Tsukiko looked towards Ishida and said, "Hey can you go and get Ichigo, please?"

Ishida nodded his head as a response and went to get Ichigo. Tsukiko looked at Orihime and Chad and told them that she was going outside. Both also nodded their heads and just watched Tsukiko leave.

Once she was outside, Tsukiko took notice that it was still dark out. The sun hadn't even risen yet. Walking over to those who were there, which were Yoruichi, Kuukaku, and Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko. Looking at Yoruichi, Tsukiko couldn't help but sweat drop at the shape of the cat's tail.

'Wait 'til Ichigo sees what he has done,' she ran her fingers through her hair. Waiting for about five minutes, the others had finally arrived and joined Tsukiko.

"Alright, you're all here." The cat spoke.

"Yeah."

Tsukiko stood next to Ichigo while the others were behind them. Something suddenly caught Ichigo's attention. It was Yoruichi's tail.

"Yoruichi-san, you tail looks like those really bendy toothbrushes." He dumbly pointed out.

Tsukiko, Orihime, Chad, and Ishida all just had shocked faces at what Ichigo had just said. Yoruichi's ears twitched at what they had just heard. Yoruichi's spirit energy appeared as a deadly red shade.

"...Have a problem with it?"

Ichigo began to freak a bit and said, "N-No, as usual, it's a beautiful tail."

Ishida then walked up towards Ichigo's left and said, "Don't you remember? You're the one who did that!"

"Huh? Me?"

"It took all three of us to try and detach you but-" Ishida began while Tsukiko finished,

"I ended up detaching you from the tail."

Tsukiko and everyone looked at Yoruichi. Poor cat had an anger mark, sweat drops, and tears coming from its eyes. "My tail...My beautiful tail..."

"You shouldn't mention the tail again, Ichigo." Tsukiko said as she patted his shoulder.

"I-I understand," Ichigo replied with a sweat drop.

"Hey, what's going on with Ganju?" Kuukaku suddenly asked, breaking the tension away about the cat's tail.

"If you mean where he is, he was downstairs reading something and mumbling." Ichigo told her.

"Wait one minute!" Ganju's voice rang out.

Everyone looked towards Ganju and saw his outfit. Wearing a black hakama with two white swirls, a white and green kimono with a yellow kosode underneath, while a green bandana adorned his head, Ganju was breathing hard as if he had run a marathon. In his hand he held some sort of paper.

"The _hero_ always arrives late!" He said with a wink as he pointed at himself.

"What the hell is that get-up?" Ichigo asked.

Ganju just laughed and said, "Ganju-sama's personal battle costume. Cool, ain't it? I wouldn't lend it to you even if you cried and begged me. Serves you right!"

"Battle costume?" Tsukiko said with a weird look on her face.

"Even though you're seeing us off?" Ichigo asked.

With a serious look on his face, Ganju walked towards Ichigo and just stared at him. Suddenly Ganju said, "My big brother was killed by Shinigamis."

'What?!' Tsukiko was totally caught off guard and so were the others.

"Ganju, dammit!" Kuukaku shouted as she began to get up.

"Be quiet and listen to this, too, Sis." He shouted to Kuukaku before continuing what he was saying, "My brother...was a genius. He was accepted to the Shinigami institute on the first try. At that point, his spirit power was already a level 6. That was in the junior adjutant class of the Thirteen Court Guardian Squads. Then he graduated from the six year curriculum in one year and joined an actual squad. In only five years, he climbed his way up to Fukutaicho. But he was killed!" He shouted.

"He was betrayed by the Shinigami who were his comrades! I was still a kid back then, so I don't remember the details. But there are at least two things I'll _never_ forget. Faces! _Two_ faces. The demon-like face of the Shinigami who dragged my beaten and dying brother home...and the face of my brother happily thanking that Shinigami. Why he did that...Why he seemed so happy...I still don't know. But there's one thing I _can _say...

"My brother didn't despise the Shinigami. He didn't hate them. Why?! Why didn't he hate the Shinigamis?! Why did he keep on believing in them?!" Ganju then suddenly grabbed Ichigo's shihakushō and said to him, "You're different than other Shinigamis. That's the feeling I get. I feel like if I go with you, I might find something out. So I'm going to help you. I'm going right to the edge to see what a _real_ Shinigami is!" He then released Ichigo.

"Ganju-kun..." Orihime said softly.

"Wow," was all that Tsukiko said.

"Ganju-dono!" Koganehiko cried.

"You've grown up so fast..." Shiroganehiko said as he and his brother were crying together.

"It looks like he's got his mind set," Kuukaku said to herself.

Ichigo suddenly then grabbed Ganju's kimono top and said, "Thanks for the help."

All Ganju did was smirk and say, "You bastard..."

After that little sentimental moment, Yoruichi announced, "Everyone, are you ready for the cannonball?"

"Yeah." Everyone said with a nod.

Ichigo then looked down at the orb that was currently in his hand and said, "Oh, now that you mention it, Yoruichi-san, can you make a cannonball?"

"Eh, I wonder." Yoruichi said while narrowing its gold eyes. "Let's see, perhaps I'll try."

"Don't tell me this is your first time..." Ishida said aloud.

"Well, set it down there." Yourichi jumped from where it was currently sitting at. Walking towards the orb, Yoruichi simply jumped on top of it and then a cannonball formed around.

Everyone was surprised. "Cool!" Tsukiko said with a smile.

"Something like this is nearly as simple as breathing to me," The cat boasted.

Orihime, being the easily amazed one, clapped and said, "Amazing! And it was so hard for _us_, except for Tsukiko-chan."

Tsukiko simply smirked and as for Ichigo, he dropped to the ground in defeat.

"Jealous? Are you jealous that I accomplished in the blink of an eye what took you hours and hours? Eh?" Yoruichi teased Ichigo.

Tsukiko gave off a chuckle and said, "Hey I was able to do it fast too."

This even made Ichigo more depressed.

"You ready?" Kuukaku shouted towards the group. "No stopping from here on out, you brats!" Kuukaku then punched the cannon and there, a circular opening appeared. "Come on, get inside."

Tsukiko walked in with everyone. The order of the circle went as follows: Tsukiko, then Ichigo, Ganju, Chad, Ishida, and Orihime with Yoruichi in the middle. Every one of them had a hand on the orb.

"Dawn will break soon." They heard Kuukaku say from the outside. "That'll be the signal to start the launch procedure."

"Listen," Yoruichi said. "Once we get into the Seireitei, don't separate no matter what. If we encounter a captain, run away without a moment's hesitation. Our objective is Rukia's retrieval, that is all! You _must_, under NO circumstances, take unnecessary risks!"

Tsukiko looked up towards the opening of the cannon and began to see light. "Dawn is approaching," She said aloud.

From outside, everyone began to hear Kuukaku start the incantation. "_Beyond! Bronze-colored greed desires thirty-six degrees of control!_"

"It's begun!" Yoruichi shouted. "Pour in your spirit power!" And with both hands, everyone began to do so. A blue spark appeared and then the cannonball.

"_Seventy-two pairs of Illusions. Thirteen pairs of Horn Flutes! The right hand of the Monkey...grasps the Stars!_"

Tsukiko almost jumped when she heard something slam to the ground. She breathed in and out, calming down and just focusing on her spirit energy.

"_Embraced by twenty-five Suns, the cradle of sand will spill blood. _Kakaku fire method no. 2! KAGIZAKI!"

And that's when they all were sent towards the sky. Tsukiko closed her eyes for fear just had to strike at that time. When she finally had the guts to open them, she saw the sun rising and the cannonball distancing from the cannon itself.

"There wasn't as much impact as I thought there'd be," Ichigo calmly said.

"Fool, just you wait." Ganju grinned at him.

At first the cannonball was simply going upwards, but now it went a whole different direction. And it was going pretty fast.

Everyone screamed at the sudden speed the cannonball had suddenly picked up. Ganju, then pulled something out of his kimono top. Tsukiko peaked over Ichigo's shoulder and saw it was an incantation.

'But to what?' She thought.

"What's that?" Ichigo asked him as he looked at the paper as well.

"It's the continuation spell. Kakaku fire method no. 2 is a two-part chant. The time from launch until choosing of direction is controlled by the beginning spell, and after that, acceleration and trajectory adjustments are controlled by the continuation spell." Ganju explained. "That way, you bring up the accuracy of each. If you wanna break in there safely, don't bother me!"

"O-Okay!"

"There's something I wanna tell the rest of you, too." Ganju began as everyone looked at him. "In order to break into the Seireitei, we need to stabilize this cannonball. We have to regulate everyone's spirit power emission level uniformly. So here's the deal. While you're touching this, you can feel the others' emission levels. I need each of you to regulate yourself to match the others. If we mess this up, it's all over. I'm countin' on you!"

"Got it!" Tsukiko said.

"I understand," Ishida said.

"Aye, aye." Orihime replied.

"Kakaku fire method no. 2! Continuation Spell!" Ganju suddenly shouted.

When he began to recite the second part of the spell, Tsukiko closed her eyes and focused on everyone's spirit power. She felt that everyone was already matching up and she input the same amount of spirit energy that she needed to put in. Even though everyone was getting there, Ichigo wasn't and he had a lot of spirit energy.

"_Ties of the Three Sparrows, Ties of the Four Dragons, Blocking the Five Directions, Returning not Six Ri._"

"Ichigo," Tsukiko whispered to him. "Lower your spirit energy."

"Got it," he replied to her.

"_Heavenly Wind, the Drunkard, Spoon, Cane of Elm...._"

"Kurosaki-kun, that's a bit too much." Orihime told Ichigo.

"O-Oh, really? I thought I lowered some after Tsukiko told me. S-Sorry." Ichigo said. Ichigo concentrated trying to lower his spirit energy but...

"Kurosaki, lower it some more!" Ishida said.

"I-I know! I've decreased it a lot."

"Ichigo..." Chad said this time.

"I said I know! I'm decreasing it now! Just wait a _minute_!" Ichigo shouted.

"_A thousand ashes, a thousand wisdoms, the sum of white clouds. Approaching Luna, stepping not on the scarlet shadow. A thousand ashes, a thousand wisdoms_- Goddammit!" Ganju suddenly shouted. "You made me read the same line twice!"

Ichigo shouted back, "What the hell, dammit?! That's my fault too?!"

"I lost my concentration because you were yellin' and screamin', dumbass!"

Then the two slammed their heads together, pushing each other with their foreheads.

"You guys stop! This is no time to fight alright!" Tsukiko shouted over the two boys.

"She's right! Quit it!" Ishida agreed with Tsukiko. "I said quit it!"

"Both of you stop!" Orihime said this time.

"Hey, look outside!" Chad suddenly said. Outside they now had the perfect view of the Seireitei.

"It's the Seireitei!" Ganju shouted.

"Wow, it's so big," Tsukiko said in amazement.

"We're going to hit it!" Ishida shouted.

"No choice now. Everyone pour in all your spirit power!" Yoruichi commanded.

And with that, everyone did so. Tsukiko focused her eyes on her gloved hands as she poured in all the spirit energy that she had in her body. Immediately, there was impact. Tsukiko looked away from her gloves and looked towards the shield. It looked like if lightening was striking as the cannonball tried to get in.

"Go through!!!" Ichigo shouted. And just like that, it went in. But something happen that wasn't suspected. The cannonball broke and everyone was now floating around. Tsukiko gasped in both fright and amazement.

"What's going on?" Tsukiko asked.

"It's good we got through the shield, but why aren't we falling to the ground?" Ichigo asked.

"Stay together! Right now, the cannonball has hit the shield and is dissolving, and they're only momentarily intertwined." Yoruichi shouted.

"Which means..." Ishida waited for an answer.

"Soon, it will begin to whirl, the burst and be destroyed."

"What?!" Orihime said shocked.

"If we're separated at that moment, the shockwave will send us flying in all directions!" And right after Yoruichi said this, it began to whirl.

"It's begun!" The cat shouted.

"Ichigo!" Tsukiko shouted as she reached for his hand.

"Tsukiko!" He managed to grab her and said, "Stay with me."

"Dammit! I ain't gonna fly away!" Ganju said as he 'swam' towards Ichigo and Tsukiko.

"Stay away from us!" Ichigo shouted as he and Ganju argued.

"If you don't like it, _you _get outta the way!"

"_You_ stay away!"

"That's enough of that, you two!" Ishida shouted towards them.

"Everyone, grab the person closest to you! Don't let go no matter what!" Yoruichi commanded.

"Damn!" Ichigo said as he reluctantly grabbed onto Ganju, while still holding Tsukiko.

"Damn yourself!" Ganju shouted back at him.

Chad grabbed Orihime and held her. Yoruichi jumped into Ichigo's shoulder and said,

"I'm borrowing your shoulder!"

"Yoruichi-san!"

Ishida was falling out of the whirl and lucky for him, Chad noticed.

"Ishida!" Chad shouted as he tried to reach Ishida, but to do so, he let go of Orihime.

"Sado-kun!" Orihime shouted. Ishida was right about to fall out of the whirl, but lucky for him Chad grabbed him and tossed him back in.

"Sado!" Both Ichigo and Tsukiko shouted.

They only saw Chad as a ray of orange, flying away from them.

"Don't worry! He, for one, will survive! More importantly, if you want to find him down there, first think of your own safety!" Yoruichi said to the two Shinigamis.

Tsukiko looked towards her right and saw that Orihime too was going to reach the end of the whirl.

"Tsukiko-chan!" She shouted reaching for the dark haired Shinigami.

"Orihime!" She tried to reach but couldn't. Sighing Tsukiko looked at Ichigo and said, "Ichigo."

Ichigo looked at her as she continued, "Be careful." And with that, she grabbed his face and kissed his lips. She tried to release everything she felt for Ichigo before letting go. She smiled and released herself from his grip.

"Tsukiko!!!" Ichigo shouted at her.

Luckily, Tsukiko managed to grab Orihime and tossed her to Ishida. But unlucky for her, she went out of the whirl.

"TSUKIKO~~~!!!!" She heard Ichigo scream. She was now flying to who knows where.

Tsukiko just focused on her new flight path. Not knowing where she was heading to, she held her arms out like if she was flying and began to concentrate on breaking her fall. She was getting close to landing to the ground when she saw the number thirteen in one of the buildings. Passing that, she started to see trees, meaning she was about to land in a forest.

"Kuro Maho!" Tsukiko shouted. A black sphere surrounded her right when she made contact with the ground. Darkness then clouded her vision.


	31. On My Own Now

**This story is now back in action!! Sorry for the complete lateness, you guys. I was having trouble continuing the series since I had no idea what to write and I really wanted to change the way that the story was written. And for the shortness of the chapter. If you guys liked the old way, let me know and I will go back to writing in the old style. Thanks again for all the reviews and the messages for me to continue the series!!**

**Disclaimer: Bleach, characters and plot belong to Tite Kubo. Everyone else belongs to me.

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**Chapter 31: On My Own Now

When I opened my eyes, all I saw around me was a blur. After blinking a few more times, my eyes had finally adjusted to the scenery. Everywhere, all I saw was trees and it was a lot of them. The first noise that came out of me was a groan as I began to use my arms to stand up. The pain was bearable from the landing, but I still winced a bit.

As soon as I was up completely, everything looked better than being on the floor. I turned around and looked at where I had landed. Damn that was pretty bad.

"Jeez, now what?" I said to myself as I ran my fingers through my hair.

I closed my eyes and tried to hear my surrounding. All around me, all I heard was the sound of the wind in the air and going through the trees. Once I opened them, a thought just came to me. This place kinda reminds me of Kuro Maho's realm. But sadly, it wasn't. I was in enemy territory.

My thought disappeared as I suddenly picked up the spirit energy of someone. Well, three people to be exact.

"Damn, gotta hide somewhere!" I sprinted further into the forest that surrounded me.

While running, I decreased my spirit energy so that it would be harder to track me. After running a few more feet, I decided that the best way to go was to climb up a tree. I ran towards the tree that was currently in front of me and immediately I jumped onto the first branch. I kept jumping and jumping until I made it to one of the tallest branches. I hid beneath the shadow of a branch that the branch above provided for me. Then, my trackers appeared.

"We lost the trace!" I heard a male say as his two companions showed up behind him. The male that spoke had black hair that was spiked up and a goatee. Around his forehead was a rope that was tied like a headband and also had white shoulder ropes.

"What do you mean you lost the trace?! Start searching for it again. We can't afford to lose the ryoka. Besides I don't want to lose against Kiyone!" He screamed at his two companions.

I sweat dropped at the sight in front of me. God they were idiots. But now wasn't the time for me to laugh or anything since there was another group looking for me. Jeez, now I have to be more cautious now.

"Let's go this way," the male that lead his group said as they ran off east.

I watched them run off and decided that it would be better if I waited for a few minutes. I waited for a good five minutes and then jumped off the tree. As soon as I landed, I looked at my surrounding and concentrated on any spiritual energy that could be near the area.

"Man that was a close call," I said to myself as I sat down next to the trunk of the tree that I had earlier climbed to hide. Now I didn't have to worry as much.

"You're telling me," Kuro Maho materialized next to me and rubbed the back of her neck.

"What the hell are you talking about? You weren't the one being chased!" I gave a small glare at the spirit of my Zanpakutou.

All Kuro Maho did was smirk and say, "Well technically I was since I am strapped onto your thighs. Hmm, this would be a good time to teach ya some tricks while we are stuck here for a while."

This definitely caught my attention. "What kind of tricks?"

"I was thinking about teaching you Latin. You know, for your attacks and all the other good stuff that I am gonna teach ya!"

"Teach me please!" I said with much enthusiasm.

"Hmm, I don't know. I mean, you were a bit rude to me."

I turned my body to face her completely as I said, "C'mon! Teach me!! This would for sure confuse the enemy or something. Do you want me to get on my knees or something?"

"Sure that would be great!" Kuro Maho smirked at me as she now stood tall in front of me. She pointed to her feet and said, "Now bow down before me!"

I growled as I moved toward her slowly. I looked at her smirking face as her purple eyes looked at me. Once I was in front of her feet, I spoke.

"I am on my knees, can you teach me now?"

"Seeing that you did get on your knees, I will. Now let's begin!"

I stood up from the ground and grinned. "Yes! Wait, where are we gonna do this?"

"Right here, silly. Now sit down again," The magician told me before she sat down herself.

I sat down and looked at her as she closed her eyes and chanted something in Latin. Her arms were stretched out in front of her and when she finished reciting, a black book suddenly appeared.

Kuro Maho smirked at the look of amazement that I had on my face. She then opened her book and began searching for whatever she was looking for. Curiosity hit me as I tried to look at what was in the book, but as soon as I got close, she slammed the book shut.

"Alright, I know what I am going to teach you! But first, we need supplies!" Kuro Maho snapped her fingers and there appeared her pitch black katana.

"Please don't tell me it's gonna be like how we practice at Urahara's place?" I asked her. Jeez, I was scared as hell when we practiced.

"Nope! I just like having this around me," She smiled worry-free. Sweat drops surrounded me, but soon disappeared. She set down her katana next to her as she said, "Okay, the first thing. You know how you normally say Mystic Shadow Strike…"

"Yeah…"

"Well, I'm gonna teach you that in Latin. The words are, _Mystic Umbra Offendo_. Now repeat it."

"_Mystic Umbra Offendo_," I repeated the words for her.

"Good!" Kuro Maho beamed. "Now I want you to repeat that until I find the next thing I want to teach you in my book."

I sweat dropped but nonetheless continued repeating the words. While repeating the words for a long time – I lost count – I began to think what could be happening to the others. I know for a fact that Chad can fend for himself. He's smart, strong, and thinks before acting.

Orihime should be with Ishida. So she is safe. Besides, if she was to get separated from him – which I hope doesn't happen – I know that she can take care of herself. Ishida will be fine, I know for a fact. He's smart and analyzes things. But then again, he can go overboard sometimes.

Yoruichi will be fine. From the knowledge that I gained about the cat, it has experience here in the Seireitei.

Ganju should be fine too. Hopefully he does not try to run away from fights or hopefully he doesn't fight with Ichigo all the time. He does have some pretty good moves so he should be good.

Ichigo, I know, will be all right. After all that training he had with Urahara, he should be in top shape and in excellent condition. I just hope that he doesn't just rush into things like I know he typically does. But still, I do hope he survives this. Hm, I wonder where he could be at right now.

"Alrighty! I found the next thing to teach you!" I heard Kuro Maho shout in excitement. I turned to look at her as she shut her book once again.

She then grabbed my left hand and pulled off my glove. I was about to say something in protest but she raised her hand and silenced me.

"Okay, you know when you create your shield it just appears when your in serious trouble or at risk of getting hurt," Kuro Maho said. I nodded my head which allowed her to continue. "Well now you can summon it willfully with this spell that I found."

My eyes widened in shock, "Is that even possible?"

"Yup!" She placed my glove on her left hand and she then held it out. "Now pay close attention, Tsukiko. _Tutela_," Kuro Maho said and that's when the black shield appeared.

'Holy crap!' I thought as I looked at the shield. Normally I have to be in a serious and life-threatening situation in order to activate the shield. But now that I have this, I can use it more often.

"Ready to learn this, Tsukiko?" Kuro Maho asked me as she handed me back my left glove.

I nodded my head as a response and placed my glove back on my left hand. Kuro Maho motioned me to get up and I did.

"Alright, walk a few feet away from me alright," She told me as she took a few steps back.

"Okay," I began walking back a few steps before stopping. I turned back to face her and I shouted back to her, "Okay, I'm ready."

"Good! Okay, now to activate the shields you have to say the word _tutela_. This means Guard in Latin. Ready?"

I cracked my fingers and placed my arms back to my sides. "I'm ready!" I shouted to her.

Then suddenly, Kuro Maho shouted something in Latin and immediately a fireball was sent towards my direction. I waited for a few seconds before shouting out, "_Tutela_!"

A black light suddenly appeared before me, blocking the fireball from hitting me. I was glad that the shield was see-through for me because if it wasn't, I would totally be screwed right now. Kuro Maho kept on sending fireballs towards my direction and I kept on using my hand to create the shield. After two minutes, she finally stopped.

"Good job, Tsukiko. Now come over here for a second."

I walked back towards her and as I did she began to explain something to me.

"Now here is the only problem with this technique. It will only last for a total of five minutes. Once the word is said, you can use it as much as you would like. But once five minutes has passed, you will need to say _tutela_ once again. Understand me?" She asked me after her explanation.

"Yes' ma'am," I told her as I removed some of the hair that fell into my face.

"Good. Now let's teach you one more spell. This spell will allow you to heal small wounds quickly. However, the large wounds will not be fully healed. It will heal some of your wound but it will mostly make it less painful. This also includes any broken bones or whatnot. Now the word is _lenio_."

"_Lenio_," I repeated.

"Right. This word means relieve. Just remember that you have to be extremely careful using this spell. You need to use an exact amount of spirit energy when you use it. So be wise at the amount that you do use, alright?"

"Okay, I got it."

"Good. Now repeat the words to me that you just learned," Kuro Maho said as she leaned against a tree.

I sighed and began to repeat the words and their meaning, "_Mystic Umbra Offendo_ means Mystic Shadow Strike. The next word is _tutela_, which means Guard. This is for my shields. Lastly, _lenio_ which means Relieve. This is mostly for wounds that I have gotten."

"Nice job!" She gave me thumbs up, "Now you're ready to kick some bad guy butt!"

"Sweet! How about you –" I stopped talking once I felt something. I blocked out all noise and focused on my surroundings.

"Tsukiko, there are four of them coming this direction," Kuro Maho told me.

"I sensed them. You should go back," I told her.

"Be careful and don't forget what I taught you," was the last words Kuro Maho said before dematerializing.

"No sweat," I whispered. I looked around the area and tried to determine from where they would be coming from.

Soon, I felt the four shinigami nearing me.

"Well Tsukiko, what do you plan on doing now?" I asked myself.

And that's when the four of them appeared. All were male and each wore the standard shihakushō.

"Are you one of the ryoka?" The one with brown hair and eyes asked me as he held out his Zanpakutou at me.

"Maybe or maybe not," I told them as I watched every one of them.

They moved slowly and now I was surrounded. By now, all the men had their Zanpakutous out and ready to strike at me if I made any sudden movements.

"Ryoka, if you make any sudden movements, we will attack even if you are a woman," the same man spoke.

"Wrong choice of words," I said to them. That's when I decided to attack.

Using shunpo, I made my first move to attack. As I went towards the one that was behind me, I pulled out my sais and hit the man on head with the blunt side of my blade. That's when they all noticed that I had begun to attack.

Now with one of them down, there were only three left. They each ran towards me as soon as they saw me. Once the first one came at me, I began my fighting. The first one to strike at me – who was the one with brown hair and eyes – swung his zanpakutou downwards which resulted in me bringing up my sais, creating an X and blocked his attack. He pushed his blade downwards, putting all of his weight on it and I knew that if he kept on doing this it would for sure give the other two a good opportunity to attack me.

'It's now or never,' I thought and with that I brought my right leg up and kicked the shinigami's stomach.

He stumbled back as the other two came towards me and attacked. I became flustered for a second as I wasn't sure on who to attack first, but nonetheless I lifted my two sais and ran towards the two. As I approached the two, I quickly dropped to my knees and side kicked the one my left. He dropped to the ground as I slashed the one on my right with my right blade.

The shinigami hissed in pain as he grabbed onto his right leg. I got up and grinned at current accomplishment, but I shouldn't have lost my concentration.

"Ahh!!" I hissed in pain as I felt someone slice my side.

I turned to face who it was and it was the same shinigami that I had tripped. He grinned at what he managed to do. But that was a huge mistake on his account.

I faced him and immediately I engaged in combat with him. I swung my right blade at him and tried to catch him off guard. The shinigami blocked my attack and we were face-to-face.

"What's a pretty thing like you doing here, hm?" The shinigami said as he moved his face closer to mine.

"I'm here to kick your ass!" I shouted as I stowed away my left sai and used my hand to quickly punch him in the face.

He staggered back and held his hand against him face. I turned away from him and ran towards the one whose leg I had sliced. He saw me running towards him and he prepared himself to fight. I just smirked and before I had reached him, I used shunpo to end up behind him. I used the blunt side of my sai and hit him in the head, knocking him unconscious.

Now I only had two left. The one who I had stuck in the face now ran towards me screaming out some sort of battle cry. I gripped both of my blades now as I ran to him as well. Our blades sang as they collided against another. We both jumped back and that's when our fight got serious. He swung his blade downwards and I brought mine up to block him.

We pushed back one another and I attempted to stab the shinigami in the stomach. But he managed to jump back and swung his zanpakutou at me. I bent down backwards and managed to dodge the attack, though I was really freaked out since he could have killed me like that. I got back up and smirked as I raised my sais up.

"_Mystic Umbra Offendo_!!" I swung them down and simply watched the glittery, black energy make its move towards the shinigami.

He wasn't able to dodge it and immediately was knocked out.

I closed my eyes and felt the last shinigami make his way towards me. I raised my right blade up and quickly turned around and threw my blade towards his direction. It flew straight towards him and it struck his shihakushō, but my zanpakutou kept moving and struck itself into a tree. As a result, the brown haired and eyed shinigami was now stuck against a tree.

I walked towards him with a serious look at my face. I was now facing him and I said, "What squad are you in?"

"Why would I tell you, you filthy ryoka!?" He shouted back at me.

I lifted my left sai and said, "I don't want to kill you alright. Answer me this question and I will let you ask one yourself. Now what squad are you in?!"

"I'm on the Thirteenth Squad," He answered my question. "Why are you here?"

I lowered by sai and placed it back in its sheathe. "I'm here to rescue my friend. You might know her. Does the name Kuchiki Rukia sound familiar?"

His faced suddenly looked surprised after I said Rukia's name. "I know her. She is currently in prison. Rumor has it she is being executed. If you're here for a rescue mission, I wish you the best of luck. She doesn't deserve to be executed. But I will say this, be careful around some of the captains. My captain would be more willing to help you."

"Thanks a lot!" My mood suddenly became cheerful. Hm, maybe I am bipolar sometimes. "Oh, what's your name?"

"Kimura Hiroshi," He said.

"I'm Takeshi Tsukiko," I smiled at him. "Well Hiroshi-san, thanks for your help. Oh and sorry for what I'm about to do. Hopefully we'll meet again."

"Huh? What do-" That was all Hiroshi was going to say since I removed my zanpakutou from the tree and hit him in the head with the blunt side of it.

Immediately, he fell to the ground unconscious. I sighed and placed my last sai back into its sheathe. "Time to clean up this mess."

I went to grab each of the shinigami and sat them all up against each other. Once they looked nice and comfy, I went to lean against the nearest tree. I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed until a stinging feeling ran up my body.

"Crap, I almost forgot about this," I looked at my side and saw blood running down. I placed my right hand on my injury and said, "_Lenio_."

A red glow appeared and instantly I felt my injuries pain calm down and soon enough it stopped hurting. I watched the glow disappear as I lifted my hand up. The injury was gone and so was the pain.

"Thanks a bunch, Kuro Maho. Now I think it's best for me if I continued to move. My safest bet is to find this thirteenth squad captain and ask for his help and to find the others. Ichigo, I hope you're alright. Please don't die," I wished as I looked up at the clear blue sky.

"Alright time to move," I said to myself as I lifted myself away from the tree. "I got a while until night falls."

I move some of my spirit energy towards my feet and began to climb up the tree. Now that I was at the top, I began jumping from tree to tree.

'Guys, be safe.'


	32. A Note From the Author

**Hello everyone! Hope you all are having a fantastic new start to the new year.  
**

**I just wanted to let you know after a long, _long_ time thinking that I have decided to start over Famous Last Words.**

**After reading all of the material and how I wrote it, I have come to thinking that I know I can write a way better version of this (especially since this story clearly shows how much of a novice I was when I started writing). I hope this doesn't upset everyone at all. **

**It's all going to be fresh with a new title, character name, looks, plot. The whole bang! So like I said earlier, I hope this doesn't upset you all much since from the bottom of my heart I know that I can do way better. The one thing that I will need help from you awesome readers is creating a new ****zanpakutō**. By that I mean it's name. So with that said, y'all can personal message me what you think would make an awesome name. I may give out a prize for the winning name, I just don't know what it should be.

**Thank you for taking the time to read this story. You all are my inspiration to continue being a writer. Just remember, a new version will be coming out soon. :)**

**P.S.: It will remain being an Ichigo fanfic...he is just sexy. Lol!  
**


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